Not Without You
by CaptainPudge
Summary: 18th Century Elsanna Pirate AU. When Anna spotted her in Arendelle market that day, she had no idea just how much her life would change from there on out. Vague summary because I just don't want to give too much away. Lots of Elsanna though. And eventual pirate captain Anna.
1. Chapter 1

_March, 1713._

That was the year Anna first laid eyes on her. Of course, she had no idea who she was. But so help her, she'd be damned if she didn't find out. She spotted the girl as she was walking through the bustling mid-morning crowd of Arendelle market, accompanied by another woman. Had Anna paid any attention at all to this other woman, she may have figured out who the girl was a little sooner, considering the company she was in. But Anna was far too preoccupied with her all too blatant staring at the beautiful young woman who had graced them all with her presence that day.

She was of higher class, that much was certain. The way she held herself, polite and reserved, she was the complete picture of sophisticated grace. Not to mention the sumptuous, elaborate clothing. But what really caught Anna's eye was something other than just the unknown girl's clothing. It was her face, her hair, her eyes... her entire being. Anna was certain she hadn't seen anything quite so perfect in her life; flawless pale skin, impeccably styled platinum blonde hair that was up in an elegant bun, that adorably dainty nose, the well defined cheekbones, and those eyes... big, bright blue eyes that were filled with curiosity as they examined all the trinkets and merchandise that the market stalls had on offer.

Anna continued to watch the woman from where she was sat, perched upon a wall overlooking part of the town. From her position she could see the majority of Arendelle's market and the docks where the fishermen and sailors gathered. Not too far from the town, if she looked in the right direction, she would be able to spot Arendelle Manor right on the edge of the Fjord. It was easily the largest building in all of Arendelle and the home to Lord Kristiansen and his family. But none of that intereseted Anna. She was still captivated by the blonde woman who was slowly making her way through the market.

And that's when she looked up. The woman happened to glance up to the wall where Anna was sitting and their eyes locked. Anna was momentarily stunned as she gawked down at her before quickly pulling herself together and offering the blonde a smirk and a wink. The woman quickly pulled her gaze away from Anna and stared at the ground, blushing profusely. Anna chuckled to herself as she watched her face turn red. And that's when she noticed just who it was that this woman was in the company of. She knew that woman. Well, not personally; but she knew of her. Everyone knew who she was. Lady Kristiansen of Arendelle.

And then it hit her. This woman, this exceptionally beautiful young woman had to be the daughter of Lord and Lady Kristiansen. There was no doubt about it, the resemblance between the two women was remarkable. Anna had never seen their daughter before. She was never seen in public, always kept herself hidden away in the manor. But for whatever reason, she was out in the market today with her mother. It had to be her; the mysteriously unknown daughter of the Kristiansen family, heir to the Lordship of Arendelle.

As Lady Kristiansen and her daughter started to make their way out of the market and back to their estate, the latter took one last glance up at Anna on the wall. Anna's gaze was still on the young woman and she offered her a small smile this time, diminishing her arrogance with the lack of a smirk. The woman's reaction was very much the same, though to a lesser extent; she blushed slightly and lowered her gaze as she walked alongside her mother. As she watched them walk away, Anna's only thought was _'I have to find out her name.'_

She jumped down off the wall and walked swiftly through the market towards the docks, discreetly swiping a carrot from the vegetable stand as she passed. She didn't have to search for too long before she found who she was looking for; her tall, stocky, blonde haired best friend and of course, his reindeer companion.

"Kristoff," she greeted him warmly as she approached. Kristoff had been checking things in the back of his sled before he turned around upon hearing her voice. No doubt he had just finished loading his latest shipment of ice onto a cargo ship to be transported out of the country.  
"Anna, hey. What are you doing here, we hadn't arranged to meet until noon. That eager to see me, huh?" he asked, eyebrow raised and smirk etched on his face.  
"Oh shush, I came to ask you something. It's important! Absolutely could not wait until noon!"  
"It couldn't wait thirty minutes?" Kristoff deadpanned.  
"Absolutely not!"

As Kristoff waited for her to divulge whatever it was that was on her mind, Anna made her way to the front of the sled to greet Sven the reindeer who was harnessed up to it. "So just out of curiosity, do you know anything about the daughter of the Kristiansen family?" she asked, trying to sound as casual as possible.  
"Who, Elsa? Elsa Kristiansen?" Kristoff was rather taken aback by the question. "Why on earth could you possibly need to know anything about her?"  
"Elsa..." Anna said softly, more to herself than anyone as she fed the previously stolen carrot to Sven, who gratefully consumed it without hesitation.

"Anna?" Kristoff attempted to get her attention as he unhooked Sven from the harness in order to lead him to the stables.  
"Hmm?" Anna responded, too lost in thought to realise what her friend had just said.  
"I said," he replied, rolling his eyes at her, "Why do you need to know about Elsa?"  
"Oh... I just saw her in the market earlier. I've never actually seen her before. I mean, has anyone even seen her before? I don't know but goodness, she is so beautiful. I can honestly say that I have never seen a single person to have been graced with beauty such as that. Gods, Kristoff she is just really pretty and-"

"Woah, wait a minute," Kristoff said, interrupting her rambling. Whist Anna had been preoccupied with going on and on about how attractive she found the Lord's daughter, Kristoff has managed to put his sled away and secured Sven in the local stables. The duo were now making their way back through the market and into the main part of town. "You mean to tell me that Elsa Kristiansen was outside, in public... surrounded by people? I thought she was a recluse. Not many people have managed to even catch a glimpse of her." he explained as they reached the tavern. It was customary for the two to meet in the tavern at noon on the day of Kristoff's arrival back from an ice harvest. The two of them ordered their drinks and sat down at their usual table.

"Well I didn't even know who she was at first," Anna explained. "It wasn't until I saw who she was with that I realised. Lady Kristiansen was in the market today, which isn't too unusual I suppose. But my God, Kristoff... Elsa... she is just... wow.."  
"A little lovestruck, are we?" Kristoff smirked at the younger girl sitting across from him.  
"What?! No! Of course not! I'm just-" Anna couldn't stop the blush that was now spreading across her freckled cheeks.

Kristoff chuckled at her embarrassment before taking on a more serious tone.  
"Look, Anna... I know she's pretty and mysterious and interesting but... you have to stay away from this girl okay. Nothing good can come from this."  
"What? Why not?"  
"Anna, seriously. Whatever sudden interest you have in her, you need to get rid of it. You're going to get yourself into trouble."  
"What's wrong with casually noticing a pretty girl?" Anna asked defensively.

Kristoff sighed. He knew he was going to have to explain.  
"Anna... I know what you're like. You don't just casually notice someone. It's nice that you've taken an interest in someone but you have a tendency to fall too hard too fast. I just don't want to see you getting hurt. Not to mention Elsa is the daughter of the Lord of Arendelle. If that doesn't automatically make her out of bounds to anyone then I don't know what does."

"What d'you mean 'out of bounds'? She's not out of bounds! She's a person, you can't put boundaries on a person!" Anna was not enjoying the turn this conversation had taken.  
"Anna, look at it this way: she is the daughter of Lord Kristiansen and sole heir to Arendelle. Not only that but she tends to stay away from the social side of things, hence why you've never seen her before today. You wouldn't even be able to manage to get the chance to have once conversation with this girl. And even if you did get that chance, I doubt she'd even know how to respond to a simple 'hello'. Plus, you're a commoner. I'm fairly certain she wouldn't want to deal with riff-raff such as you and I. To be honest, I'm amazed she was out in the market today. I'm willing to bet that's the last you or anyone else sees of her in a long time." Kristoff finished his explanation.

Anna couldn't hide the disappointment from her face. She knew Kristoff had a point. But by God, she was willing to prove him wrong. She knew she was being stubborn but that was a fact that Anna cared not about. She needed to talk to this girl. She had been completely captivated just by looking at her today. She could only imagine what it would be like to be able to talk to her, to have a proper conversation with her. If she was out in the market today then she had to be willing at least to some extent to socialise with commoners such as herself. So Kristoff couldn't have been entirely right on that point. Anna was going to see this girl again... somehow... some way... they would find themselves in each other's presence and Anna was going to strike up conversation. If only to hear the voice to match to her face. Anna was determined.

"Hmm... So how's your ice business?" Kristoff then went into detail about what had happened on his latest ice harvesting trip. The rest of their time in the tavern was spent conversing about ice and other such small talk. Anna was only half heartedly interested in the conversations today though. Try as she might, she just could not get that woman out of her mind. Elsa Kristiansen.


	2. Chapter 2

This was reckless. It was a foolish, reckless idea and if Anna got caught then she was in trouble. But she honestly could not bring herself to care. After spotting Elsa Kristiansen in the market the previous day, she hadn't been able to take her mind off the girl for a single moment. She'd spent the night laying awake in bed trying to formulate a plan to see her once again, properly this time, with the possibility of an actual conversation. After going through as many ideas as she could think of, the only one that could possibly work was the most high-risk.

Considering Anna had never seen the girl before yesterday, it was highly unlikely she'd just bump into her into the market any time soon. And so, she would have to take it into her own hands to see her rather than leave it up to chance. And that was how Anna found herself wandering around the outskirts of Kristiansen Estate in the early evening, trying to find a way to get in without being spotted. Yes, this was definitely one of her most reckless ideas.

The entire estate was surrounded by a fifteen foot wall. This wasn't something that Anna could just clamber over with a running start; she'd need some help. And as luck would have it, she came across what appeared to be an easily climbable tree that would help her up and over the wall. She managed to get high enough in the tree with little trouble, although her decision to wear a dress today was probably a poor one. She hadn't really taken into consideration the physical activities she'd be doing whilst picking out her wardrobe for the day. But despite that, Anna was now high enough to attempt to jump over to the top of the wall.

Looking at it now, however, the space between the tree and the wall was bigger than she anticipated. Anna was a determined soul though, she was confidant enough she could make it with minimal injury. And so, she steadied herself on the branch that was supporting her, took a deep breath, and leapt towards the wall.

The space was definitely much bigger than she originally thought and Anna just barely managed to grasp the top of the wall without falling back down to the ground. She landed rather ungraciously with a soft "ooft" before pulling herself up the wall and sitting down on top of it, her legs dangling over into the Kristiansen property.

* * *

Elsa bid her parents a polite goodnight after dinner and made her way to the gardens for her usual evening stroll. The atmosphere was particularly calming that night as she walked casually along the side of the manor, looking up to admire the clear evening sky. With her attention directed upwards, something else happened to catch her eye. Something that did not belong there; or rather someone.

There, sat upon the top of the wall surrounding her home, was a girl. It was _that_ girl. The one who had caught Elsa's attention while she was out with her mother the day before. She was just sat there, plain as day, triumphant smile plastered on her face as she looked down at Elsa.

What exactly it was about this girl that had caught Elsa's attention, she was quite uncertain. Perhaps it was the air of careless freedom she had about her or maybe the way she was notably sat on a wall every time Elsa saw her. It could have been that confidant smile she seemed to wear constantly or her apparent determination to catch Elsa's eye. It might have been her face; the adorable, ever-curious blue eyes or those freckles.. so many freckles upon her nose and cheeks.. freckles that went down her neck and covered her shoulders and arms. Elsa could take a guess that she had them all over her body, not just her arms and face. She blushed at the sudden intrusive thought of thinking about this complete stranger and what she might look like underneath her clothes.

And then she remembered the issue at hand. She had gotten distracted by this strange girl that she completely forgot that she should probably do something about her sitting up there on her family's wall as if she owned the place!

"Hi there," the girl finally spoke up before Elsa could do or say anything. "Sorry about this, by the way. I just wanted to.. come speak to you.. I guess. And I know this wasn't really the best way to go about it. It was completely stupid really, I know that, but I just really wanted to talk to you. I saw you yesterday in the market. You remember me, right? That was me up on the wall. I guess I always seem to be sat on walls, huh?" Anna was rambling. She was rambling and she couldn't stop herself. "Well I'm not _always_ sat on walls. This is just strangely coincidental, I suppose." By this point, Elsa was completely baffled by how much this girl could talk. Even if she could get a word in edgeways, she wouldn't quite know how to respond to anything she was saying. "So anyway, yeah.. hello.." Anna trailed off, offering Elsa a small wave.

All Elsa could manage was an expression of complete and utter confusion. That is, until she brought a gloved hand up to her mouth as she let out a small chuckle at the complete ridiculousness of the situation. Here she was, taking a casual stroll in the gardens surrounding her home and there on the wall was a strange girl who couldn't stop talking.

"Aaand you're laughing at me," the girl continued. "I should probably go. This was a bad idea," she said as she started to turn herself around on the wall, ready to jump back down on the other side.

"Wait," Elsa started before she could stop herself, "don't.. don't go." She spoke so softly she was surprised the other girl even heard her. But she did. And with that, Anna turned back around unable to stop the grin that was spreading across her face.

"Okay, hey.. I know this is a completely irregular way to meet someone, but I just so happened to see you in the market yesterday and wanted to introduce myself. You left before I could even think what to say to you. But here I am, climbing walls just to say hello. I'm Anna."

"Well, it's a pleasure to meet you, Anna. My name is Elsa." Elsa gave her a polite introduction.

"Yeah, I know who you are," Anna replied. "Well I didn't until yesterday. I mean I knew you existed but I'd never seen you in person and I didn't know your name and it wasn't until I told my friend, Kristoff about you that he said 'oh that must be Elsa Kristiansen' and I was-" Anna stopped herself when she saw the amused expression on Elsa's face as she continued looking up at the rambling girl. "Sorry. I.. sometimes I.. talk.. a lot.. sorry."

"It's quit alright, don't apologise." Elsa offered her a comforting smile.

"No, I should apologise. I have a tendency to ramble when I'm nervous or excited I guess." Anna explained.

Elsa raised an eyebrow at that remark.

"Do I make you nervous?" she asked, not knowing what came over her as she said it. That definitely wasn't something she would usually say in this sort of situation. Not that she'd ever been in a situation like this before, but Elsa still had no idea what made her react in such an arrogantly sly manner.

"What?! no it- it's not that.. I just- I.. um.. well.. ehh.. hmmm.." Anna had all but given up on trying to form any sort of coherent sentence as she sat there and blushed at her sudden lack of ability of being able to talk. Lord, what was this girl doing to her?

At that point, Elsa had also started blushing which she seemed to do so easily in the presence of this girl. She didn't understand the effect she was having on her, but she was almost certain she liked it.

And that's when she felt it; the temperature suddenly dropped and she looked down at her hands. A thin layer of frost had started to form from her fingertips, despite the protection of the gloves. She hid them quickly behind her back before Anna could notice.

"I.. um.. I have to.. go. It's getting late." Elsa quickly tried to excuse herself so she could retreat back to her home and lock herself safely in her room.

"Oh um, okay then," Anna tried not to sound too disappointed. She wasn't one for hiding her emotions very well though.

And Elsa noticed. She didn't want to leave the girl upon the wall so suddenly, but she had to get away from her for fear of her finding out about her secret. Or worse, she didn't want to end up harming her. That was the last thing Elsa wanted to do, so she had to get away despite her wanting to stay outside and talk to Anna all night long.

"Can I come again?" Anna asked. "To see you, that is. If you want. I'll stay away if you'd rather I did but I would like to come by and talk to you again."

Elsa couldn't ignore the hopefulness in Anna's voice. And she definitely couldn't deny it.

And so, despite her better judgment, Elsa nodded her head before quickly turning around and making her way back towards the manor.

Anna was just left to sit there, wondering what on earth had just happened. Everything was going fine, or so she thought. What had she said that suddenly made Elsa run away from her?

Anna lost track of how long she sat on top of the Kristiansen's wall pondering over the evening's events. Eventually though, she brought herself back to reality and turned around to jump from the wall, landing rather unceremoniously in the bushes below. And with that, she made her way back home.

* * *

"Conceal, don't feel. Conceal, don't feel." Elsa was pacing her bedroom frantically, trying to keep herself under control. Snow had started to softly fall, gradually covering her furniture and turning everything white. Frost was creeping up the walls and her large window had completely frozen over, blurring the view outside. "Don't feel, don't feel, _don't feel!_"

Elsa frantically grasped at her hair, which had been released from the bun it was in previously and was now flowing loosely down her shoulders and back. She ran her hands through it roughly, trying to get a hold of her emotions.

Now she remembered why she had spent years of her life isolated from people; they had an uncontrollable effect on her. Her mother had allowed her to accompany her to the market yesterday with the promise that she now had full control of her powers. And she had done well. She proved to her mother that she could control herself around people, at least for a short amount of time. But then Anna came along.

Anna with her fearless attitude and adorable rambling. Her long, braided strawberry blonde hair and the mass of freckles that adorned her face and shoulders. And she came along and basically ruined any sort of progress Elsa had made with the control of her powers. And she just couldn't understand why. It didn't make sense as to why this girl sent Elsa's head spinning. Why she was making her heart beat at such a frantic pace.

Elsa didn't understand what was going on inside her and it was making her panic. Being in Anna's presence, even for such a short amount of time, was causing her to have emotions and feelings she'd never felt before. Not knowing what these feelings were or how to control them or get rid of them was making her more and more anxious with each passing moment, which of course was having a negative effect on her powers. All those years spent learning how to conceal them and keep them under control. All that effort to keep her powers under check and not let her emotions show. It all seemed so wasted now. All because of one girl that Elsa had happened to have talked to once, and very briefly at that. All this was happening because of _her._

'_Goodness, she is beautiful though._' Elsa's sudden thought caught her off guard and she had to stop and think about what had just gone through her head. Was that what was really happening? These feelings, this loss of control.. all because.. no, there was no way. It had to be something else. She couldn't actually be.. _attracted_ to this girl. There had to be another explanation.

But the more Elsa stood there and thought about it, the more it made sense. The more she thought about Anna, the quicker her heart would beat and she could feel the blush returning to her face as it had done so often since she first laid eyes on the girl.

It took her a while to finally admit it to herself, but there was no denying it now; Elsa was attracted to Anna. This wasn't supposed to happen though. She wasn't supposed to be attracted to some commoner girl she had spotted in the market. She was supposed to be attracted to a man.. a man of high status and wealth whom she would end up having to marry in order to keep her family's bloodline going and produce an heir to inherit Arendelle.

She couldn't be doing with these new feelings and she had to get rid of them. The trouble was, Elsa didn't quite know how.

And she definitely shouldn't have agreed to seeing Anna again. She supposed that Anna would show up in the same place at the same time the next day and Elsa thought that maybe she could just not show up. But then, of course, the thought of Anna sitting on the wall all night waiting for her to turn up, disappointment on her face when she realised Elsa wasn't going to be there.. Elsa couldn't bear it. She couldn't be the cause of Anna's disappointment.

As Elsa stood there in the middle of her room, she took a deep breath, closed her eyes and steadied her breathing in order to calm herself.

"Conceal it, don't feel it." She repeated to herself once more. And sure enough, after a few moments, the snow and ice that covered her bedroom eventually disappeared. She breathed out a sigh of relief when she managed to get control of her powers once again. All this panicking about these feelings was just ridiculous, she thought. All Elsa had to do was simply stop the feelings. If she stopped thinking about Anna in that sort of way, then everything would be okay.

That was easier said than done, though. Not that Elsa had met many people before but Anna was definitely the most breathtakingly gorgeous person she had ever laid eyes on. Just the thought of her was making Elsa smile to herself and blush yet again.

And in that moment, while Elsa was lost in thoughts of Anna, a snowflake fell from above and landed right on the end of her nose. Elsa turned her gaze upwards and saw that she had unwillingly created a small flurry above her head and it was now softly snowing right on top of her. She let out an exasperated sigh at the realisation that Anna was making both her powers and feelings run amok and there was nothing she could do about it.

"Shit."

* * *

**A/N: Well would you look at that, an update and oh so soon. I'm not particularly happy with this chapter but I've been completely over thinking it for 3 days straight now and nothing I do with it is gonna make me happy tbh. idk. Let me know if it's okay though. I've come to the realisation that Elsa is actually a difficult character to write. I hope I got them both as in character as possible though! ^^ I tried, I really did :c I can't promise that the next chapter will be updated quite so soon because as of today I have at least 5 different pieces of college work to do within the next week and I've already put half of it off to work on this chapter. Oops. Anyway, Hope you enjoy it guys. I've had some wonderful reviews so far and a lot more follows and views than I thought possible.. and it was only the first chapter! So thank you so much to everyone that's favourited, followed and reviewed. I appreciate it very much!**


	3. Chapter 3

After what happened last night, Elsa knew she was going to have to let Anna down this evening and inform her that they could no longer see each other. There was plenty of legitimate excuses she could use along the lines of the situation being improper, but the sole reason she had to completely cut ties with Anna was because of her powers. She would only end up hurting the poor girl and she knew it.

And so, Elsa spent her afternoon planning exactly what she would say that evening. She needed to revise how she wanted the conversation to go, make everything sound genuine. Make it sound like she really didn't want to see Anna anymore. Of course it was all lies.

Elsa wanted nothing more than to carry on seeing this girl. She had only just entered her life, and although they had only had one brief conversation, she did not want her to have to leave so soon. But it would be for the best if she did.

As the time for her evening stroll arrived, Elsa bid goodnight to her parents and made her way to the gardens. And sure enough, as she reached the side of the manor, the freckled girl was sitting atop the wall once again.

"Good evening," Elsa greeted, unable to stop the small smile that had formed on her face.

"Hey there," Anna replied, wearing her usual broad grin.

Looking up at Anna, Elsa opened her mouth, getting ready to explain to her everything she needed to. But as soon as she looked up into those bright teal eyes, Elsa's mind went into overdrive and she completely lost the ability to say anything.

All she could focus on was Anna's face; her eyes, her freckles, her smile. She looked up at that smile and completely melted. She couldn't take that smile away from Anna. And she knew that lying to her about why they had to stay away from each other would bring disappointment to the other girl.

As Elsa was busy with all these thoughts running through her head, she didn't notice that Anna was now looking at her with slight concern.

"Elsa? Is everything okay?" She asked.

"Hm? Oh.. everything.. everything is just fine." No it wasn't. That was a lie. Elsa was lying already in order to keep this girl happy. She let out a sigh before shaking her head and continued speaking. "No, actually. Everything is not fine. Anna I-"

Elsa stopped mid-sentence when she noticed Anna launch downwards from the top of the wall. For the second time in as many days, Anna landed rather clumsily into the bushes. Only this time, she was on the preferred side of the wall; the side where Elsa was.

Elsa hurried over to the bushes to check if Anna was alright. She wanted to take hold of her and help her up, brushing the leaves from her hair and clothes. But Elsa knew physical contact was not an option lest she lose control again, for however brief a moment.

"Anna? Anna are you okay?" She asked as Anna stood up from the large bush and made her way out of it.

"Oh I'm fine," Anna answered optimistically. "I can't say the same about your plants though. I think that bush may have a permanent Anna shaped hole in it now. Yeah sorry about that."

Elsa brought a hand to her mouth as she chuckled at the ever jokingly attitude of this girl. Until she remembered the issue at hand and once again had a more serious expression on her face.

As Anna finished brushing the leaves from her clothes, a more practical shirt and trousers combination rather than a dress, she turned to face Elsa.

"So, what's wrong? Apparently everything is not fine and I just wanted to make sure you're okay."

"Anna.." Elsa started. She didn't want to carry on with this sentence. But it had to be done. "You have to go." Elsa looked down at the grass, unable to face Anna's reaction.

"What? But I just got here! You said I could come and see you again. If you didn't want me to you could have said so, I would have stayed away if you asked." Anna explained, her voice filled with evident disappointment.

"Well I'm asking you now. Please, you can't be here, it's.." Elsa wanted to explain why. She wanted to tell Anna that it was unsafe to be around her, that she needed to stay away for her own sake. All she wanted was for Anna to know the truth and to understand why. It was the explanation she deserved.

"It is improper." Elsa was suddenly filled with self hatred at the lie she had started telling. "It is not right. It's- we can't carry on doing this. It would be best if you just go."

Elsa's sudden cold attitude towards Anna had hurt. It had really hurt. '_But what did you expect, Anna? That you would climb her wall every day and become her friend and make her like you? That you would eventually start seeing her more often and come during the day time? That you would stop being a secret friend and have tea parties and meet her parents and attend fancy balls by her side? Really, Anna? It would have ended like this sooner or later and you know it.'_

No matter how realistic she tried to be, Anna was still hurt. She was hoping somewhere along the line that everything would turn out okay. Kristoff was right. She had a tendency to fall too hard, too fast and she always got herself hurt. She brought this upon herself.

"I understand."

Elsa finally lifter her gaze from the ground and looked towards Anna, seeing the hurt in her expression. The hurt that she had caused.

"Anna, I'm sorry.. I-"

"No, it's okay. I understand, I do. A rich, sophisticated young woman such as yourself cannot be seen in my company. I get it, I'm not worth your time." The tone of Anna's voice was breaking Elsa'a heart. She didn't expect her to react with such understanding. Perhaps a little hostility maybe, but not this.

"Anna, please-"

"I already told you, it's fine. It's okay, Elsa. I understand where you're coming from. So.. I guess I'll just go, then." And with that, Anna turned away and started looking for a way to get back up and over the wall.

A little ways down the garden, she spotted a tree that would help her back over to the other side. She walked over to it, giving Elsa one last backwards glance, before climbing the tree with ease and jumping over the wall.

She was gone.

She was gone and all Elsa could do was stand there, looking at the tree where she had last seen Anna. Looking at it as though if she stared at it hard enough it would will Anna to come back.

She lost track of how long she stood there looking at the tree but Elsa finally came to the realisation that Anna would not be returning. She had made sure of that with her harsh words. She hated herself. She hated herself so much for lying to this poor innocent girl who had done absolutely nothing wrong. But Elsa could not control herself around her. It was for Anna's own sake that they had to keep apart. If only she could just explain to Anna as to why she had to make her leave. All she wanted was for Anna to know the truth.

From a young age, Elsa's parents had forbidden her from telling anyone about her powers. The people with that knowledge were limited to her parents and the very few members of staff who worked within the manor. Just to be cautious though, they had kept Elsa isolated away from society her entire life, convincing her it was for the best. And Elsa knew they were right. She had on occasion resented them for doing so but she understood it was for the best. It had kept people safe from her.

And now here she was, wanting to defy her parent's most important rule. She needed to explain to Anna. But what would Anna think of her if she did indeed tell her? She didn't want to believe it, but she knew Anna would only think of her as a monster. She was a monster. She knew it. She had the power to hurt so many people if she didn't have it under control. And around Anna, it was so difficult to do so.

Eventually, Elsa turned back to the manor and headed to her bedroom, her thoughts plagued with Anna's reaction to finding out about her powers.

As much as she wanted to explain what was going on inside her and tell Anna the truth about why she had to go, she knew she couldn't.

Anna could never know.

* * *

For the third night in a row, Anna didn't get much sleep. But unlike the past two nights, her thoughts had taken a negative turn.

She lay awake in bed constantly replaying everything Elsa had said, her words hurting her over and over again. And when she finally did drift off to sleep, her dreams were filled with Elsa's cold expression.

Anna awoke earlier than usual the next morning. She would usually sleep as much as possible if she could help it but her dreams were preventing that. And so, she dragged herself out of bed, not ready to face the day having to pretend like nothing was wrong.

'_Ugh, pull yourself together, Anna. Everything she said to you last night was true. Elsa was being realistic. Okay.. I'm never going to see her again and that's fine. That's the way it has to be. It would be.. improper.. if we were to see each other again, under any circumstance.'_

Anna hastily pulled on a dress and went downstairs, saying a quick good morning to her mother before heading outside.

It was colder than usual, despite it having been a rather warm Spring thus far. It was expected to be a lot warmer than this but Anna didn't dwell on the weather for too long. She needed to take a walk to clear her head before meeting Kristoff in the tavern at midday once again.

Anna spent the next couple of hours walking around the outskirts of Arendelle trying to piece her muddled mind together. She liked taking walks around this part of town, closer to the countryside and farm areas. It helped her to just calm down and forget about things when everything all got a bit too much for her.

She had now come to the conclusion that the whole incident with Elsa was what had to happen and it was all in the past now. Granted, she hadn't know this girl for very long nor did she really know anything about her. But Gods, Anna had found herself almost swooning just glancing at her. And now Anna would never see her again. Elsa had made sure of that.

As she made her way back into the center of town, she found herself longing to see Elsa once more. Evidently, the walk to clear her head had proved to be futile. Try as she might, Anna could just not get the beautiful blonde noble woman off her mind.

Despite it being an hour before midday, Anna entered the tavern for some pre-drinking drinks. Perhaps the effects of alcohol would take her mind off Elsa, or at least dull the pain that came with thinking about her.

She had made it through two entire glasses of ale before Kristoff finally arrived. He ordered himself a drink and another for Anna.

"Anna, just how many of those have you had?" He asked as she downed the last of her second glass before immediately starting on her third.

"Just two." Anna answered.

"Okay, well no more after this one. I can't have you getting too drunk this early in the day. Besides, I have some great news!"

"Oh, really?" Anna's usual enthusiasm was definitely absent today and it was worrying Kristoff. She wasn't usually one for feeling so down.

"Anna, what's wrong?" His news was irrelevant now until whatever was bothering his best friend was sorted out. He couldn't stand her feeling so low. And by the expression on her face, something was really bothering her.

"Nothing. I'm fine," she deadpanned.

"Anna you are not fine, you're goddamn miserable. You've been sat in the tavern drinking alone for God knows how long and I know something's up. What's wrong, Anna? Let me help you, please."

Anna looked up at Kristoff. She didn't want to tell him what was wrong, but at the same time she needed to let it out. She needed someone to complain to about all her feelings and everything that Elsa had said to her. But if she did, she was certain that the first thing to come out of Kristoff's mouth would be 'I told you so'.

"It doesn't matter," she finally replied.

"Annaaaaaa.. please." Oh God, he was giving her the big brown puppy dog eyes. Anna hated when he did that. Mainly because they both knew she could never say no when he looked at her like that. And partly because he looked an idiot if she let him do it for too long.

She sighed, giving in and telling Kristoff about both of her visits to the Kristiansen estate. She peered into her mug the entire time as if she were telling the story to her ale rather than her friend. She told him everything Elsa had said to her the previous evening and how it had made her feel. When she finally finished she still didn't look up at Kristoff, afraid of the arrogant expression that would surely be on his face.

After a few moments of silence, however, Anna braved a glance at him, needing to know his reaction. But despite what she predicted, Kristoff's face was full of concern.

He eventually started shaking his head, chuckling at his best friend's crazy antics.

"I knew you'd try and talk to her again," he said with a smile. It wasn't an arrogant one though but rather a warm smile, hoping to make Anna feel a little more comfortable after confessing what she had done. "Honestly though, I didn't think you'd be so reckless about it. I'm impressed." His smile widened.

"Wait, what?" This was not the reaction Anna had expected.

"Come on, Anna. This is you we're talking about. Of course you would have found a way to go see her. I'm not surprised at all, even if I did warn you not to. And I'm sorry that she said all those things to you. But maybe you'll listen to me next time I warn you about something." Despite his words, Kristoff's tone was in no way scolding towards Anna.

Anna's mood had lightened somewhat with his reaction. He had taken it better than she thought. Of course there was an undertone of arrogance but it was a lot less than she was expecting and she appreciated it.

"Yeah well, none of it matters now," Anna said. "It's not like I could have kept meeting her secretly. It had to end eventually and now I'll never see her again. I'm not happy about it but that's just the way it is, I guess." Kristoff still wasn't happy with Anna's mood, but she seemed to be at least slightly more cheerful than when he first entered the tavern. "Anyway," she continued, a smile on her face finally, "what's this great news you have to tell me?"

"Oh yeah! Oh, wait until you hear this!" Kristoff couldn't stop the excitement getting the better of him. "There's word of a ship coming into harbour in a few weeks time. And I know a guy who knows a guy who says there's gonna be room for someone new to work on that ship. And you know how I've always wanted to explore more of the world.. Anna, this is my chance! I could go and see new places and travel on the open seas and just.. I really, really want to go! I might not get another chance like this!"

Anna had very mixed feelings about what Kristoff was telling her. She knew he'd always wanted to do some travelling, see more of the world than just Arendelle and it's surrounding mountains. Hell, Anna wanted to do the same thing. But she couldn't stand the thought of Kristoff being on a ship with a group of strange men.

"Kristoff I-" As much as she wanted to keep her best friend all to herself, she couldn't stand in the way of his dream. That would be selfish of her. She gave him a small but warm smile. "I think you should go for it. It'll be a great experience for you, I'm sure."

Despite her smile though, Kristoff could detect the sadness in her voice. He knew Anna didn't like him being away for too long. She always missed him terribly when he was away on his ice harvesting trips. Kristoff felt the same when he was away from Anna, though he concealed a tad better than she did. Anna had always been so open and honest about her emotions.

"You know, if I did happen to go on that ship, I'd miss you too much. I don't think I would be able to go without you." Kristoff admitted.

"But you're going to anyway. Because I won't hold you back from doing this. It's something you need to go do, despite how much I'd miss you." Anna wanted to be as supportive as she possibly could for him.

"No, Anna. I couldn't go without you. So.. I guess it's lucky that there's space for more than one new person on that crew, huh?" Kristoff added with grin.

"Wait, what? What are you-?"

"I'm saying.. there's room for you too. You now, if you want to come along for the ride."

Anna's eye widened, enthusiasm instantaneously taken over her.

"Oh my goodness! Of course I want to come with you! Gosh, Kristoff this is amazing! I can see it now.. two best friends travelling the world together on a ship. Having all kinds of adventures! Meeting so many interesting new people and seeing so many different places! Wow this is going to be perfect! Oh but.. wait- do you think they'd even let me on board? I mean, Captains don't usually like having girls on their crew, do they? And is it not bad luck to have a woman on board? Oh Gods, no.. this will never work out. They'll never let me go.." Anna ceased her rambling as her face fell at the realisation of not being able to join Kristoff on his adventures. Oh but how she longed to see the world with her best friend. It would have been such an amazing experience.

"Hey now.. don't be so sure," Kristoff replied, trying not to let Anna fall into another miserable mood. "All we have to do is prove to these guys that you're capable of sailing on a ship. You'll be fine. In fact, you'll do fantastic. I know you, Anna.. you're so determined when you set your mind to something and you'll be great on that ship. Plus, you could end up coming home with a hell of a lot of coin in your pocket."

"Really? Do you think we could really convince them I'll be good. I don't know anything about sailing, Kristoff. What if I'm terrible at it?"

"No, I will not accept that attitude, Anna. You're gonna be great! I can bet half the members of that crew will have never sailed before getting on that ship. But they learnt with experience. As will you and I. Everything will be fine so long as we can convince the captain that you're worth having on the crew."

"Are you sure?" Anna asked skeptically.

"I'm sure. Besides, it's a few weeks away yet. You've got plenty of time to repair you sudden pessimistic attitude and get yourself ready to get on that ship."

Anna's face was filled with abrupt determination.

"Okay! I can do this! I will be a damn good sailor and I'll prove it! They'll have to let me on board! Hey Kristoff?"

"Hmm?"

"What exactly is this ship anyway? What is it for? What do the crew actually do? Is it like a merchant vessel or something?" Anna asked, realising she had no idea what the crew's intention for sailing was.

"Ummm.. not exactly.." The sheepish expression that suddenly etched on Kristoff's face made Anna narrow her eyes.

"This suddenly doesn't sound entirely legal."

"Oh it's completely legal, I swear! The ship is given official letters of marque and everything! It's all legalised by the government, honest. The crew on that ship.. they're privateers. We could become privateers, Anna!"

Anna wasn't entirely sure what to make of this new batch of information. She thought their adventures on this ship would be a lot more tame than this.

"So essentially we're going to become pirates?" She disputed.

"No! Privateers are not pirates and you know that," Kristoff told her.

"The distinction between a privateer and a pirate is highly vague, Kristoff. In my opinion, there really is no difference. I don't really want to become a pirate. They're nothing but ruthless criminals."

"But you won't be a pirate! Everything they do on that ship is completely legal. The government gives them permission to do everything so it's not like being a pirate at all! All we will do is sort out a few enemy warships and make sure we always have the upper hand, you know? And we'll make a bit of money along the way, which is always a plus. And just imagine all the places you'll get to see. Come on, Anna, it will be worth it. It's gonna be fun and you know it!" Kristoff admittedly have a very good argument. He was right, the work of a privateer was all completely legalised by the government so long as they never attacked ships of their own country. And despite the danger, Anna did not want to pass up this opportunity. And getting away from Arendelle for a while would do her a whole lot of good, she was sure.

"Alright I'm in."

"Yeah, that's what I'm talking about!"

And with that, they clinked their glasses together and downed the last of their drinks.

* * *

Elsa had barely slept that night. Everything she had said to Anna had left her feeling distraught. She was having a constant internal battle with her conflicted feelings. By the time the sun had risen, she had made up her mind. She was determined to find Anna once more and tell her how she meant none of what she had said that evening. She would leave out the vital piece of information about how she had control over snow and ice but she still needed to explain that her reasoning last night was not why she couldn't see Anna anymore. And she needed to apolgise at least one more time. She was going to leave the estate that very day and search for Anna, consequences be damned.

After having an uncomfortably quiet breakfast with her parents, Elsa made out as though she would be in the library spending her day doing something productive so as not to arouse suspicion.

After making her way somewhat towards the library, she quickly turned down the corridor that would take her to the entrance and headed out of the front door. Luckily the gardens were empty so Elsa managed to walk towards the front gates undetected.

She stopped right before exiting the grounds, anxiety suddenly overwhelming her. She had never left the estate unaccompanied and she wasn't sure she could do this now. The thought of losing control in public and hurting everyone in sight swam around her mind. She would be putting Arendelle in danger if she walked out of those gates.

Elsa closed her eyes and took a deep breath, eventually managing to steady her rapid breathing.

"Control yourself," she whispered. "Conceal it, don't feel it. Don't let it show. You are in control. I can control this. I can do this."

Elsa managed to talk herself out of the apprehension and finally she walked out of the gates and made her way down the road towards the bustling market.

She had no idea what she was going to say to Anna should she find her. All she knew was that she needed to apologise. And more than anything, she absolutely had to keep her powers under control. Her powers had already had an effect on the weather, making it colder than usual due to her restless night.

Elsa ended up spending her entire morning searching through the market as well as the less busier parts of town in search for the red haired girl. She had hoped Anna would be out and about, perhaps sat on a wall somewhere. But she hadn't seen a trace of the girl anywhere.

She was about to give up her search and head back home as she walked past the tavern, keeping her head down and not noticing the door to the tavern open as someone walked out of it.

Had Elsa been watching where she was going, she may have noticed said person and prevented the predicament that came to follow.

She inevitably walked straight into whoever had left the tavern and she would have gone tumbling to the ground had a pair of arms not wrapped themselves around her waist and held her steady.

Elsa flushed with embarrassment as she came to apologise to the person who had stopped her from falling, but her words caught in her throat when she noticed the familiar teal eyes and freckled cheeks.

She was still wrapped in Anna's arms as they stared at each other. Elsa was so close she could smell the alcohol on Anna's breath. neither of them spoke or even moved for a few seconds as they stood in disbelief at the occurrence.

That is, until a soft snowflake fell down and landed on Anna's cheek, instantly melting amongst the many freckles. Anna didn't seem to notice the sudden light snowfall as she still stared at Elsa, trying to figure out what she was doing here and even more so.. trying to wrap her head around the fact that she was still holding her in her arms.

Elsa finally tore her gaze away from Anna and looked at the sky. She had been doing so well up until now. She really couldn't control herself around Anna and now the whole of Arendelle would be affected by this sudden snow in Spring.

"Elsa?" Anna finally spoke up, letting go of the taller girl's waist. "What.. what are you doing here?"

Elsa looked back down to Anna with a fearful expression.

"I was.. looking for you." Elsa admitted. "But I have to go. I'm expected back home." It wasn't a complete lie. As soon as her parents noticed the snowfall they would expect to see Elsa and demand an explanation as to why she had made it snow at this time of the year.

"Elsa, wait.. don't go just yet," Anna pleaded. "If you were looking for me that means you needed to talk to me, right?"

"Another time, maybe." Elsa tried to keep her voice as calm as possible whilst simultaneously trying to control her emotions and stop the snow.

"Elsa, please. Please just tell me what's going on. Tell me why you were looking for me. What is it that you need to say?"

Elsa could only stand there, her gaze constantly shifting from the freckled girl to the snow falling from the sky and back again.

"Elsa?!" Anna raised her voice ever so slightly and gently grabbed her hand in order to get the blonde's full attention. '_Gods her hands are freezing. I need to get her warmed up._'

Without a second thought, Anna pulled the young noble into the tavern and took her to sit down at an unoccupied table in the corner out of everyone's way.

Elsa didn't see the point in trying to rush back home now. She would be in enough trouble as it was, why hurry back now?

Anna sat down opposite her, evidently concerned.

"Do you want a drink?" She asked. Of course, she didn't expect Elsa to want anything from a place like this. It was nowhere near as classy as what she would be used to, but Anna did it more out of politeness that anything.

As she predicted, Elsa shook her head silently.

"So, are you going to tell me what's the matter?"


	4. Chapter 4

It took a few moments for Elsa to answer Anna's question. She needed to gather her thoughts together before she could turn those thoughts into words. Anna waited patiently for her to answer, the concern never leaving her face.

"I lied to you," was all Elsa managed to get out. "Last night.. I lied."

"About what? Everything you said seemed pretty truthful to me."

"There was some truth in the words I spoke," Elsa explained softly, her voice barely audible amongst the noise of the tavern. "But the prime reason I did not want you around was for your own safety, not because of the lack of accordance within social standards."

Anna had to take a second to process what Elsa had just said. The reason Elsa had dismissed her so abruptly was for her own safety. Which then raised the question what could possibly be the worst thing that could have happened to her had she stayed a moment longer? The worst possible outcome Anna could think of was being caught by someone and having to be forcibly removed from the property. She couldn't exactly see the danger in that, unless Lord Kristiansen was ruthless enough to give her a punishment that was worse than the crime. Although, Anna didn't think that to be likely. He seemed like a fair and pleasant enough leader.

"Elsa, what's the worst that could possibly happen if I were to carry on seeing you?" Anna truly could not understand why Elsa was so worried about this.

Elsa glanced up and met Anna's eyes as she answered,

"I don't want you to get hurt."

Again, Anna could not comprehend how she could end up so hurt that it had Elsa looking so sorrowful.

"Hey don't worry about me, I'll be fine." She tried to reassure Elsa, but the worry in Elsa's face did not lessen.

"No you will not be fine." Elsa's voice hardened and the cold tone returned. "Not if you spend any more time around me. You cannot see me anymore, Anna."

When Elsa had started explaining to Anna about the previous night's conversation being somewhat of a lie, Anna had all too optimistically hoped that Elsa had come to fix things between them and make everything okay again. As per usual, Anna had jumped to conclusions and ended up hurting herself in the process. Because this is not how she had hoped this conversation would turn out. Elsa was shutting her out all too easily again and she needed to know what the explanation was. As far as Anna was concerned, this being for her own safety was not a good enough explantion.

"Elsa, why are you so certain that I'm going to get hurt? What's going to happen?" Anna tried to plead with her. "Please, Elsa, why can't you just tell me?"

"Because I can't!" Elsa's raised voice shocked the both of them, which resulted in Anna just sitting there dumbfounded while Elsa calmed herself down. Neither of them noticed the snow outside getting gradually worse.

"Please understand, Anna. I cannot go into detail about why. But you must trust me when I say that it is not safe for you to be around me."

"Elsa-"

"Please, Anna, just drop it. I cannot tell you and I will not tell you. I wish I could but I just can't."

Anna sighed, knowing she wasn't going to win this one. Of course, she was desperate to know whatever it was that Elsa was hiding. But she also knew that it wasn't her place to pry anymore than she had done. She had to remind herself that she barely knew this girl, she couldn't demand all of this personal information out of her.

"Woah, look at that," Anna changed the subject as she glanced out of the window. "It shouldn't be snowing at this time of year.. where did it come from all of a sudden?"

"I don't know.." Elsa mumbled as she looked at the worsening weather outside. Of course she knew where it had come from; she had started it when she had quite literally bumped into Anna. And now, as she had sat there talking to her, it had gotten worse without her notice. She was losing control. She was losing control being around Anna and there was nothing she could do about it.

"Come on," Anna offered, standing up. "We better get you home before it turns into a full blown snow storm and we have to spend the next three days trapped in the tavern because of it."

Looking up at Anna's warm face and friendly smile, Elsa's sudden thought was that being trapped in here with her for a few days didn't seem like quite such a bad idea. Despite her reluctance to leave, Elsa came to stand with the red headed girl.

"Yes, that seems like the reasonable thing to do," she replied.

The two girls made their way outside where everything was covered in a thin layer of snow. Anna shivered as she wrapped her cloak around her tightly.

"Aren't you cold?" She asked, looking over to Elsa who didn't seem to have brought a cloak with her at all. '_Goodness she must be freezing. Maybe I should offer her my cloak.._'

Elsa brought a hand to her mouth as she chuckled softly.

"Not at all. The cold doesn't really bother me."

"Seriously? Elsa, it's freezing! How are you not cold?" Anna was astonished.

"I can't really feel it. It's never bothered me, for as long as I can remember," Elsa explained. Of course, she couldn't go into any more detail as to why but the look on Anna's face as Elsa stood there with no bother to the cold was highly amusing for the blonde woman.

The two of them made their way through the town in the direction of Elsa's home, walking in comfortable silence for a few minutes before Elsa was the one to break it.

"I appreciate it, you know," She explained, glancing towards Anna. "You trying so hard in order to be my friend. I really do appreciate it."

"Oh, well.. that's okay!" Anna replied. "I'd love to be your friend, I really would. But I understand that you don't want one-"

"It's not that I don't want one, Anna. Believe me, I would love for nothing more than to have a friend and you seem like the perfect person for that. But I just.. I don't.. I have no room in my life for friends, I suppose." Elsa just didn't know how to explain. It would be so much easier if she could just say '_I can't be around you because I'm dangerous. I have ice powers and even though I have control over them the majority of the time, they seem to just go crazy around you. Not to mention I appear to find myself strangely attracted to you and pursuing a friendship with someone in this state is not really the best way to go._'

If only things were easy enough for her to tell Anna the entire truth. But she could never do that. Elsa shuddered at thought of Anna finding out about her powers, or even worse.. her attraction towards her.

Elsa's physical shudder did not go unnoticed. Although the reasoning behind it was misinterpreted.

Anna started taking her cloak off. '_Okay I don't care how cold I get now, what kind of person would I be if I just let her walk around like that getting cold?_'

"Anna, what are you doing?" Elsa asked as Anna's cloak came off completely. Anna offered it to Elsa.

"Here. It's cold."

"Oh, Anna.." Elsa was touched by such a chivalrous act. "It's okay, you don't have to. I'm not that cold."

"Nope! You have to wear it! I'm not gonna just stand here in my cloak and watch you getting colder and colder because you were silly enough to come out without one. Now put it on before you freeze!"

Elsa was never going to win against the blatant stubbornness she could detect in Anna's voice and facial expression. And so, despite her not needing it, she gratefully took the cloak from Anna's hands and put it around herself.

Upon putting it on, she was immediately enveloped by the warmth and comfort of not only the new piece of clothing, but also of what she could only describe as Anna's smell. After wearing it so often, the cloak had come to smell like Anna. It had what could be described as her natural scent. And Elsa revelled in it.

All too soon the pair had reached the large front gates to Elsa's home. Neither of the two wanted to say goodbye but it was an inevitability neither could avoid.

The snow storm had eased up while they walked and had returned to a soft flurry. Elsa wasn't entirely sure why it had happened but nonetheless she was thankful the snowfall had lightened.

"Well," Anna started, the awkwardness in her voice all too noticeable. "Here we are.."

"Yes.. so it would seem." Elsa cursed her brain for not being able to string together a better sentence.

"Oh," she suddenly remembered she was still wearing Anna's cloak. "Thank you very much for letting me wear it," she said whilst removing the piece clothing that belonged to the other girl. "I appreciate your thoughtfulness."

"Don't mention it, it was my pleasure!"

At that moment, one of the Kristiansen's maids had appeared at the other side of the gates, looking rather vexed as she laid eyes on the two women.

"Oh Miss Elsa! Wherever have you been?! The whole house has been in a frenzy looking for you.. and the weather! Oh Miss Elsa whatever has been going on?!"

The maid opened the gate and hurried Elsa inside the grounds before either of them could say a word against it, leaving Anna to stand alone on the outside.

"Come now, Miss Elsa, your father is looking for you. He needs to talk."

Elsa had been turned away so Anna could not see the sudden worry on her face at the mention of her father. But Elsa knew her father would have to speak with her. Today she had defied his rules of staying within the grounds. She had left both without permission and without company. She had left that morning and had not informed anybody of her whereabouts. She knew she would be in trouble when she returned, but at the time she did not care. Even now, with the worry of being confronted by her father, she still could not bring herself to care as much as she could. Because, despite everything, she had found Anna. And that had completely made Elsa's day more than she wanted to admit.

Anna still stood on the outside of the gates, watching as Elsa had so suddenly been taken away from her.

"Oh.. well, bye then, Elsa." She called out before Elsa was taken too far away for her to hear.

Elsa turned her head and smiled at Anna. It was a small smile, but it was genuine.

"Goodbye.. Anna."

Anna stood there grinning like an idiot for a long while even after Elsa had entered the house. All she could do was picture Elsa's smile when she had said goodbye. Despite everything Elsa had said to her today about not seeing her, after smiling at her like that, Anna was so convinced that they would see each other and talk again. No matter what Elsa had said, that smile was genuine. Elsa was the one who wanted to see Anna today. She had initiated their meeting. And Anna knew, despite what had been said in the tavern, she would see Elsa again soon. She was so sure.

It was well into the afternoon when Anna pulled herself together and headed home, the wide smile still etched on her face.

* * *

**First and foremost I want to give you all my sincerest apologies for not updating for 4 months or so. Life has distracted me from writing. I've left college now so that gives me more time for writing :D I originally intended for this chapter to be a lot longer but I wanted to get it finished and uploaded for you all so I cut it in half. But that means chapter 5 is now thoroughly planned out and will be written in no time c: So hopefully there'll be no more 4 month wait for the rest of the chapters but we'll see. And on a final note, my girlfriend informed me that today is National Talk Like a Pirate Day. I'm ashamed to say I was not aware of this but it's a happy coincidence for a pirate themed story ayyy (even though there's no actual pirates in it yet but shhhh). HAPPY NATIONAL TALK LIKE A PIRATE DAY! I hope you enjoyed the chapter and soz I'm so useless at updating but as ever, I appreciate all the support and follows and faves and reviews and I just love you guys 3!**


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: This one's nearly 6,000 words long so I hope that makes up for the slow updates recently. Sorry guys! I love y'all though!**

* * *

Elsa knew she was in trouble. As the maid led her through the house, the silence between them was near unbearable. All too soon they had reached her father's study and the maid gave her a quick sympathetic look before knocking on the large oak doors. She turned on her heel and made her way back down the hall, leaving Elsa to stand before the entrance of the study alone.

"Enter," came the voice of her father from within the room.

Elsa reached for one of the door handles, unable to control the shaking of her hands as she opened the door and crossed over the threshold.

Her father was stood at the far end of the room by the closed balcony door, his back to Elsa, looking out at the snow that was still falling outside. He appeared not to acknowledge her presence for a few seconds, still taking in the spring snow storm.

All Elsa could do was stand by the doors and wait for her father to say something. After a few seconds, she heard a sigh escape him. She knew that sigh. She'd heard it many a time before. When she was younger and still failing to control the strength of her powers she'd often create accidental snowstorms such as the one outside. Only these ones were always kept in the confinements of the house. Nevertheless, when he confronted her about it, she could always hear the complete and utter disappointment in that one single outlet of breath.

And here she was again now, feeling like a child in his presence.

Her father turned around and faced his daughter. If the sighing didn't signify the amount of disappointment he held, the look in his eyes certainly did. Elsa could feel the unwanted tears building up already. She couldn't let herself cry though, not in front of him. It would only prove to him how weak she really was.

Seconds felt like hours as her father looked towards her. He didn't say a word, as if daring her to speak first.

She finally gave in.

"Father.."

"I don't want to her it, Elsa. You have deliberately defied my rules today."

"Father, please.." A tear escaped and ran down her cheek as she tried to plead with him.

"Those rules are in place for a reason! By disobeying them you potentially endangered the lives of my people!" His voice was gradually getting louder, his anger starting to show.

"I didn't mean.." As his voice got louder, her voice did the exact opposite, now barely above a whisper.

"Elsa, you have disobeyed me and by doing so, there will be consequences. You are to go to your room and I don't want you to leave until I see fit. Do you understand?"

"Yes Father." This time she did whisper, her eyes looking down at her feet, unable to meet his gaze.

"Good. And if I am to hear you have left the grounds again then so help me I will lock you in that room for the rest of your goddamn life. Now leave."

Elsa said nothing as she turned around and fled the study, racing down the hallways. As soon as she was confined within the safety of her room, she slammed the door shut and collapsed against it, sliding to the floor and hiding her head between her knees.

The snow started to fall the instant her tears did the same.

* * *

After the surprise meeting with Elsa, Anna's hopes had been raised with the optimistic prospect of seeing her again in the near future. She knew she shouldn't get her hopes up again, but with the positive ending of their previous time together, she just could not help herself.

It had been two days since their last encounter and not once had Anna's mind wandered away from thoughts of Elsa. The woman would just not leave her brain.

The days soon passed however and turned into weeks. It had been nearly three weeks since Anna had last seen Elsa. She was getting worried. Of course she knew Elsa wasn't going to just be strolling about town.. she had done that last time and Anna had a feeling that she may have gotten into some trouble for it. Not too much though, she hoped.

Before too long, it was nearly time for Anna to be leaving with Kristoff on the ship that would take them away for who knows how long. If she wanted to see Elsa one more time before she left, she'd have to take it into her own hands. But first, there were other matters at hand that needed her attention.

The first of which was getting a place on this ship. Anna was skeptical that they would let a woman aboard but Kristoff was more optimistic about the situation.

That evening they met up by the docks and Kristoff led her towards the ship that could potentially take her away from Arendelle.

Apparently he had already met with the deckhands whose job it was to recruit people onto the ship and they were more than pleased to have someone of Kristoff's caliber aboard there. He wasn't unfamiliar with hard physical labour and his physique proved that. Nor was he unafraid of conflict if and when it came to that. He had a definite place as part of the crew. Now all they had to do was convince them that Anna was just as capable of becoming a member.

The ship, which was named _Providence_, was easily the largest one in the docks. Despite the lateness of the hour, it was bustling with life. All the lanterns were lit and the entirety of the crew were coming and going, doing various jobs in order to get it ready to set sail. It wasn't due to leave until the next evening but a lot of preparation was needed before it could go anywhere.

The only members of the ship who appeared to not be doing anything of any importance were two men who were sitting around a barrel, using it as table and playing with a deck of cards.

They weren't the friendliest looking of men but when Kristoff appeared before them, they looked up and smiled at him, which eased Anna's nerves around them. If they were friendly with Kristoff then they couldn't be too bad.

"Ahh Kristoff, m'boy!" greeted the elder of the two as Kristoff approached them, Anna close behind. "You ready to set sail?"

"Aye, Abraham, I am indeed," Kristoff replied as he roughly shook the older man's hand. "But first, I wanted to introduce you to someone. Someone who I think is ample enough to join the crew."

"Oh aye?" Abraham questioned, evidently intrigued as to who was standing behind his large, young acquaintance.

"This here is Anna Baudin." Kristoff brought Anna round the face both the men. "Very capable, I assure you."

"She's a girl." Announced the other man, who seemed to be not much older then the two young friends.

"Why yes, Hamilton, yes she is. Well spotted. That doesn't make her any less capable than any of the men on that ship."

"Well.. yes actually, it does. We don't take little girls. Get rid of her." The young man, Hamilton, said.

"Now, now, Ham. Don't be so rude to the young lady," Abraham argued.

"But Abe..!"

"Quiet, boy!" Abraham turned his attention towards Anna, who stood there as silent as ever, feeling uncomfortable under the gaze of both the men before her.

"Now then, Miss Baudin.. you believe you're able to come aboard this 'ere ship and get on with whatever work the Cap'n gives you?"

Despite her discomfort of the situation, Anna wasn't going to let it get to her. She was too dauntless to let that happen.

"Yes sir!" she replied all to eagerly, her face the vision of fierce determination.

Abraham chuckled ever so slightly before he became serious again.

"Now, girl, this vessel needs absolute one hundred percent from every single member of her crew. I'm all for giving everyone a chance but first I need to know a few things."

Anna waited silently for him to question her on whatever he needed to know.

"First of all, how are you with heights?" Abraham asked as he glanced up towards the rigging of the ship.

Anna followed his gaze and inspected just how high the ship was.

"Oh I'll be fine up there," she answered. "I've been on Ice Harvesting trips with Kristoff before and we've climbed some pretty high mountains. Heights aren't a problem for me, Sir."

Again, Abraham chuckled at Anna, obviously amused at her calling him Sir.

"Very good. Now how are you at handling the more dirty jobs that come with being a crew member? Ships need a lot of looking after and they get filthy easily."

"Oh please, I'm a master at cleaning!" Anna was amazed at how well she seemed to be doing so far.

Hamilton sat staring at her, an unpleasant look on his face. He was clearly not enjoying how this conversation was going.

"Very well.. one more thing. This one's the most important. How's your bravery? There's a lot of things out there that you need to brave: the temperamental weather of the sea and storms for one thing. Confrontation, physical or otherwise. Creatures of both the land and sea. And.. other things.."

Anna had to let all of that sink in for a few seconds. Of course she knew the weather may be terrible at times and she was prepared for that. Confrontation was going to happen, she knew that. But she supposed she hadn't really prepared herself for something so physical. She'd never been in a fight in her life. She'd never hit someone before, not purposefully. She'd never fired a gun before.

She did, however, have experience in sword fighting. Her and Kristoff had practiced that together since they were children, starting off with wooden swords and moving on to the real thing as they got older. She even owned her own sword. It was nothing too fancy but it was good enough to defend herself with.

And the creatures? She hadn't thought about those. How bad could the sea creatures be? And the land creatures? Where did they plan on going?

What really got to Anna was the way Abraham had said 'other things'. What did he mean by that. She didn't dwell on it all for too long though. This was something she wanted to do. She needed to get out there and do this. Her sudden boldness returned.

"I'm sure I'll be fine with all of that, Sir." She explained. "I'm prepared for the bad weather of the sea and I'm ready for a fight if needs be! I'm no stranger to a sword!"

"Ah yes, Kristoff has informed me you're pretty good with one. I'll take his word for that, then. And I can see you've got enough spunk to join us. I like you, Baudin. You've got character and determination! Just what we need on 'ere! Welcome aboard, young Miss!"

Abraham went to shake Anna's hand as a welcoming.

Anna couldn't believe it.

Apparently, neither could Hamilton. His look of pure disgust at the news of him having to work with a woman was a sight. He stood up and spat on the ground as he made his way onto the ship, grumbling to himself.

"Oh don't you worry about him, young Miss. He's just not used to being around women too much. Doesn't like working with 'em. Stupid boy." Abraham explained, trying to ease Anna's nerves as she watched Hamilton walk away.

"Anyway, you best get home and pack your things and say your goodbyes! We leave tomorrow night. See you then, Miss Baudin."

"See you then, Sir!" Anna bid her goodbye before making her way home. "See you later, Kristoff!" And she turned and left the docks, leaving Kristoff with Abraham.

All the way home, Anna was thinking what she would pack. Dresses weren't really suitable for sea life, but she'd maybe pack just one should the occasion ever call for it. She supposed she'd need lots of shirts, pants and her boots. Comfortable, easy wearing clothes.

Then she thought of her goodbyes. Her mother knew she may be leaving the next day and they had planned a little dinner together before she left for the ship.

And then her thoughts turned to Elsa. She hadn't seen the other woman in weeks. Obviously she wanted to say goodbye to her, let her know she would be leaving for a good while. But that would mean having to sneak back into the grounds of Elsa's home again. Which Anna was all to willing to do, but she kept second guessing whether or not Elsa would want to see her.

And then she remembered the smile. The smile that was etched upon Elsa's face as she said goodbye to her when they last met. The memory of that smile is what determined Anna's decision. She had to say goodbye. And so she made the plan to go see her after the dinner with her mother the next evening. She would see Elsa right before she left to board the _Providence_.

Anna spent the next morning packing and unpacking everything into a large bag. Every time she'd fill it up with essentials, she was positive it was all wrong and take everything out and pack all different things. It was safe to say she was panicking a little. She didn't want to forget anything important or take something with her that she didn't really need.

Finally, when the early afternoon came, she was sure she was ready to go. She had plenty of clothes with her (including her favourite dress, just in case) and an extra pair of shoes along with the boots she would be wearing that day. Everything that she needed was in her bag.

This was it. The following hours would be Anna's final ones at home for a very long time. She left her bedroom and went to see how her mother was getting on with their last meal together.

She was preparing a special chicken dinner with vegetables and potatoes. Anna's favourite. And she was going to make the most of it, considering this would be her last decent meal for a while now.

"Oh, I sure am going to miss you, dear," her mother said, emotion filling her voice at the thought of her only child leaving her to go on adventures in the great, wide unknown.

"I'm gonna miss you too, mother!" Anna replied, her mouth still full of the potatoes she was shoveling in just seconds ago. "But don't worry," she said as she swallowed the last of the food in her mouth, "I'll be back before you know it and it'll be like I wasn't even gone!"

All too soon it was time for Anna to set off and start a new chapter of her life. She and her mother shared a prolonged and emotional goodbye with lots of hugs, tears, and promises of writing home if and when she could.

And with that, Anna set off down the dirt path leading away from her home and off towards the town. Instead of heading towards the docks though, she took the path that led to her first destination: Kristiansen Manor.

Anna was determined to see Elsa one more time in order to say goodbye before she left for who knows how long.

The sun was low in the sky when she arrived to the usual tree that would help her over the wall. Once Anna had climbed the tree and onto the top of the wall though, she realised she hadn't actually thought it through any further than this. Elsa was usually waiting at the other side of the wall when she did this. Anna supposed she had hoped to catch her on an evening stroll as she did the first time but alas it did not appear to be so.

She looked around, wondering whether or not it was worth going in and searching for the blonde woman or just turning around and heading for the _Providence_. But Anna knew she'd be filled with regret at not saying goodbye should she proceed with the latter.

She got to her feet and slowly made her way across the top of the wall, leaving her bag safe in the tree. She wasn't done just yet and she was determined to figure out how to find Elsa within this place. Anna walked all along the wall that was to the side of the house and around to the back. She didn't quite know what she was looking for but she was sure to find something.

As Anna made her way round to the other side of the house she spotted movement in one of the upstairs windows. It was a double balcony door and she could see right into the room. And who should she see but the blonde beauty she had been searching for.

* * *

Had Elsa noticed the excited red head standing on the wall outside her window, she may have been reluctant to close the curtains of her large balcony doors and make her way over to the queen sized bed in which she slept.

For the past few weeks, her thoughts had been dominated by that of the freckled red head and Elsa getting to the point of desperation to see her again. She couldn't quite fathom the thoughts and feelings she was having towards this girl.

She had spent the entirety of her time in this room since her father had sent her here on the day she last saw Anna, only leaving to have evening meals with her parents. The rest of her food was to be consumed within the confinements of her bedroom. Elsa was used to this sort of treatment. She understood that her father, strict as he was, didn't want anybody getting hurt because of her powers.

The family's staff all knew about Elsa's powers and that was why there was a very limited number of them for such a large and powerful family. And Elsa knew they all feared her, feared what she could do.

Elsa tried to calm her mind as she tried and failed to fall asleep. Sleep was something that didn't come easily to her, kept awake each night with anxiety.

* * *

Anna stood atop the wall staring up at Kristiansen Manor, figuring a way to get up to that balcony. If she walked a little ways down the wall, there was yet another tree she could climb in and reach the building. The only problem was that it wouldn't take her to the right balcony; it was two away from where Elsa resided.

Studying the balconies on the building though, Anna noticed how large and close together they were. It would be dangerous to do so of course, but if she made her way onto the balcony that she could reach, she might just be able to jump across the other two in order to reach what she believed would be Elsa's room.

And so Anna went for it.

She walked down the wall towards the tree and made a leap for the branches; the top ones were thick enough to hold her weight easily.

"Oh the things I do for this woman," Anna mumbled to herself as she clambered across the tree and closer to her destination. "She better be pleased to see me after all this!"

She let out a small sigh before looking over to the balcony. This one would be easy, the tree branches grew right across and actually touched the building. She hopped off and onto the balcony floor. Almost there.

Anna walked across to the other side and climbed up on the edge. The gap wasn't too large; this jump would be easy for her. She bent her knees and took off into the air and landed on the other side, not quite as gracefully as she could have done.

As Anna stood up straight, she looked over to the last balcony. She was so close. Again, she made her way to the other side and up the ledge. She leapt once more but her landing was way off this time.

Instead of landing on her feet, they gave way beneath her as she hit the ground and she tumbled and fell quite painfully on her behind.

"Owww!" Anna groaned as she sat there sprawled on the floor outside Elsa's bedroom.

* * *

Elsa sat up in bed. Something was outside. _Someone _was right outside her balcony doors. And they weren't doing a very good job at being silent. If this happened to be a thief of some sort, they weren't a very good one.

Elsa's curiosity got the better of her as she heard a pained groan coming from outside. She got out of bed and cautiously made her way to the doors. She didn't know what to expect when she peaked from behind the curtains, but it certainly wasn't what she saw in front of her. And what a sight it was!

It was none other than the freckled, red headed young woman she couldn't take her mind off of.

Elsa pulled back the curtains and looked down at Anna with a mixture of concern and amusement. Anna looked up as soon as Elsa pulled back the curtains, her face lighting up with sheer excitement.

"Elsa!" she exclaimed, forgetting that she shouldn't be here and needed to keep her voice down.

Worry suddenly filled Elsa at the thought of someone hearing their intruder. She pressed her finger to her lips and widened her eyes, hoping Anna would catch the urgency of the situation and keep herself quiet.

"Oh," Anna whispered, more to herself than Elsa. She stood up and wiped herself down. "Can I come in?" she asked politely, edging closer to the door.

Elsa looked around as if expecting someone to walk into her room any moment. She stayed that way for a few seconds until she was adamant no one was going to come and inspect the commotion that had been made. When she was sure it was safe she turned back around and opened the balcony door, letting Anna into her bedroom.

"Anna.." Elsa started, still taken aback by the shock of this woman appearing right outside her bedroom in the late evening. "What on earth are you doing here? And how?"

"Oh you know me, I'm always climbing up something to see you. It was no problem!" Anna replied, her hushed voice so clearly full of excitement and nerves.

"But.. why? I don't understand." Elsa had now closed the door and had turned around to face Anna.

"I wanted to see you." Anna's reply was so sincere.

"I.. I still don't understand.. why have you gone to all this trouble and put yourself at so much risk.. just.. for me?" Elsa just could not comprehend why Anna was so adamant and excited to see her. Not that she was complaining right now, she just having a hard time processing it.

"Because I like you." Anna stated, her cheeks slowly turning red.

"Wha-?" Elsa's cheeks were starting to match Anna's as she realised what she had just said. "What do you mean.. you li-?"

"I like you, Elsa. I mean, I really like you." Anna started rambling, the shade of her cheeks getting darker and darker with every second. "Since the day I first laid eyes on you I thought you were the most beautiful person I've ever seen. I can't get you out of my head.. ever! You're just _always_ on my mind no matter what. And I know we haven't exactly spent a lot of time together and we don't know each other that well but every moment I'm not with you my heart aches to see you again." She had started subconsciously fiddling with her hands now, as she usually did when she rambled on and on. "I don't quite understand why I feel so strongly about you. I mean, I barely know you. But I know that I want to get to know you." Elsa just stood in disbelief as Anna stepped closer towards her until they were just inches apart. "I want to know everything about you, Elsa. I want to know all your likes and dislikes. All your little quirks. I wanna know what it's like to hug you and.. to hold your hand and.. and to kiss you."

Before Anna could stop herself, her lips were upon Elsa's. Elsa didn't even have time to respond as the red headed woman she was so attracted to pulled away suddenly. Before Anna could apologise for such inappropriateness, Elsa found herself leaning in towards her. And with a distinct lack of willpower, she was suddenly kissing her again.

Anna responded instantly and brought her left hand up to Elsa's cheek, lightly touching that side of her face. Elsa gave an involuntary shiver at the touch of Anna's fingertips against her skin, a feeling of warmth spreading inside her.

Anna's left hand worked it's way to the back of Elsa's head and she softly pulled the taller girl even closer to her as she placed her right hand on the other side of Elsa's face. Elsa's right hand appeared to suddenly be firmly planted on Anna's waist. She raised her left hand up and held on to the younger woman's wrist, gently keeping it in place on her face.

Neither of the girls felt the gradual drop in temperature around them, too lost in each other to notice. That is, until it started to snow ever so softly.

Anna's eyes fluttered open as she felt something cold on her nose. She looked up to Elsa in confusion, wondering what it was. Elsa's eyes were still closed, her breathing heavy from the kiss. She opened them slowly and looked down at the freckled woman in front of her only to find that Anna's gaze was directed up above them, a look of pure bewilderment on her face.

Elsa followed Anna's stare and saw what she was looking at. Up above them was a small flurry of snow ever so delicately falling down upon them.

"What the-?" Anna gasped as she looked up at it. It didn't appear to be falling anywhere else in the room other than right above them.

"_Shit!_" Elsa whispered to herself.

Anna looked away from the flurry and back at the woman she had been kissing just moments before.

"Elsa? Do you- did you- how is this happening?"

"I can explain.." Elsa pleaded quietly.

"Then go ahead, I'm listening." Anna responded, smiling up at her warmly.

Elsa couldn't understand why she wasn't freaking out about this. It was snowing _inside_! How could she be stood there so calmly waiting for an explanation?!

Elsa looked down at her feet, too ashamed to hold Anna's gaze as she responded.

"I did this," she mumbled

"What?! But.. _how?!_"

"I don't know how. It just happens." Elsa didn't know how she was going to explain everything to Anna and have her understand what this was. "Ever since I could remember I've always had these.. _these powers_. Well, it's more of a curse really. I've had a hard time controlling it the majority of my life. I still find it difficult. Especially around you..."

Anna couldn't quite believe what she was hearing. But the proof of it was happening right above her so she couldn't _not _believe it. Still, she was astounded at what she was hearing. And then she realised...

"So... that's why you tried so hard to make me stop seeing you? Because.. you didn't want me to find out about what you can do." Anna understood now.

"It's not just that." Elsa had walked over to her bed now and sat down on the edge of it. Anna followed and sat down next to her. "There's not just snow, you know. There's ice as well. And it can get dangerous. I can hurt other people. On previous occasions I've created full blown snowstorms in this room alone. This is why I spend so much time in here.. so I don't hurt anyone else."

Elsa still focused her gaze on the floor, her hands wringing together in her lap.

Anna noticed and placed a warm hand gently upon Elsa's evident cold ones. Without warning another flurry had formed above them, this one slightly more aggressive than the last.

"Oh!" Anna looked up, shielding her eyes from the snow with her free hand. Elsa forced Anna's hand away from her own.

"Do you see?! You see what happens to them when I'm around you?!" She stood up from the bed and ran her hands roughly through her hair, turning to the woman still sat down "I can't control them, Anna! It's too dangerous for you to be around me! I'm too dangerous.. you'll only get hurt.."

Anna got up and walked slowly towards Elsa so as not to startle her.

"Elsa?" she said softly. The blonde girl looked into Anna's eyes. "I don't believe you're ever going to hurt me." She took the older girls hands in her own. "I have faith that you can control your powers. I'll even help you if I can! I want to help! I mean, just look around you now.."

Elsa looked around the room and sure enough.. the snow had stopped.. all of it had disappeared.

"You see, you can control it."

The sudden realisation hit Elsa. Around Anna her powers may be uncontrollable.. but with Anna doing and saying the right things, she also helped her to take control of her powers. She helped her get rid of the snow.

The confusion that Elsa was feeling was making her head spin. What was this girl doing to her?

"Uh-oh.."

The blonde woman looked back down at Anna.

"What is it?"

"I- uhh- I kind of.. have to go.. right now.." Anna said sheepishly as she looked towards the mantel clock above the fireplace at the other end of the room.

"Right now?!" Elsa didn't want her to go. She had been hoping to see Anna for weeks and here she was in her room. And not only had she explained all about her powers to Anna, but they had just shared a kiss as well. Surely she could stay a little bit longer.

"Yeah.. um.." Elsa wasn't fond of that tone of voice. More than likely, she was about to be thoroughly disappointed.

"I'm leaving."

She was right.

Utter disappointment.

Elsa just stared silently as Anna went on.

"Me and Kristoff.. he's my best friend.. we're kind of going on a ship tonight. We've got jobs on there as part of a crew of privateers!"

"And.. how long will you be gone for?" Elsa asked, trying with all her might not to let her disappointment show.

"I.. don't know. A few months maybe? It could be longer. I have no idea when I'll be due back in Arendelle." Anna was feeling so conflicted. On the one hand she was excited to get out into the world with her best friend and make some money. But then there was Elsa. She didn't expect this meeting to go so well! And after that kiss, she couldn't bear to leave this woman for God knows how long.

"Oh."

"Elsa, I'm sorry! I didn't even plan on this evening going so well! I only came to say goodbye but.. we kissed.. and.. you told me about your biggest secret! And.. I know we have a connection. You feel it too, don't you? I know you do. And believe me, after tonight.. I really don't want to leave so suddenly.. not without you.. but.. I have to." Anna was on the verge of tears and having to say goodbye and seeing the sheer sadness in Elsa's eyes as she explained everything.

"It's okay, Anna. I understand. You made a commitment and you must stick with it. And I suppose.. I suppose I may see you upon your return. If you return."

"Of course I'll return! Elsa, I'll come back for you if nothing else! Believe me you will see me again! I'll be back home as soon as I can okay. I promise!"

"Don't make promises you cannot keep, Anna. Going out to work as a privateer takes a lot of work and commitment. I know of men who haven't been home in years due to following the life of a privateer. In fact, some of them.. some of them don't make it home at all. It's dangerous business." Elsa explained, the hurt becoming all too evident in her voice.

"Elsa.. I will make it back in one piece. I will do." She took hold of Elsa's hands again. "I'll do it for you." The tone of her voice was so solemn that Elsa couldn't help but believe her.

"You will?" she whispered.

"Of course."

Both women spent a good few seconds just smiling softly at each other, holding on to this moment as long as possible.

"I need to go," Anna whispered eventually.

Elsa sighed.

"Okay. Then I will see you out, I guess."

They walked the few steps towards the balcony door and then outside, hand in hand.

"As soon as I'm back I'll come straight for you okay. Straight for you." Anna promised as she squeezed Elsa's hand.

"Just come back okay. That's all I ask. Just come back."

"I will. I promise you that."

Anna reached up and gave Elsa one last soft kiss before letting go of her hand and climbing on to the balcony edge.

"Be safe, Anna!" Elsa called. Anna turned around and smiled at her before making her way across the balconies, into the tree and out of sight.

Elsa watched her go and stood there long into the night, silently staring at the last spot in which she'd seen Anna before she disappeared. That was it. She was gone.

* * *

**A/N: so here it is! Chapter 5! Longest one yet apparently wow. I hope you enjoyed that because wow that kiss was hard to write ugh. I find it so difficult to describe all the fluff. Angst is far easier to write. Anyway, I'll honestly try my best not to wait another 2 months before I update wow I'm so bad at updating. Sososososo bad. Sorry guys :c Now I wanna dedicate this chapter to my utterly amazing girlfriend because I wouldn't have got it done without her. It would have turned out so shiiiiiiiiiiiiiite. So yeah, do me a favour and go give her a follow on tumblr. She's a fucking beaut and she cosplays all different AU Elsas. Y'all should enjoy that :3 so go follow tumblr user queenofdorkendelle and I'll promise to update sooner next time ;D And just for making you wait so long, here's a My Immortal styled deleted scene that I wrote when I was trying to explain to the gf how this chapter was gonna go. She also helped me with this bit. Here ya go, you guys:**

Dey smooched. It wuz adorbs. Dey finished. Den anna was all like K BYE I GOTTA GO AWAY FOR MONTHS NOW. elsa cud not fathom da wordz dat had just left annas mouth. she was almost left speechless. almost. den da wordz came. BBY PLS! she exclaimed wit eyez as wide as a wide thing!


	6. Chapter 6

_April, 1713._

She was regretting it already. Getting on this ship had been a big mistake and Anna was more than aware of that. She knew it would be difficult, obviously. But not quit to this extent.

The work was hard and strenuous. Kristoff tried to spend as much time with Anna as possible but when he was given a different task to do than her, he had no choice but to leave her and get on with it.

Not everyone had taken quite an immediate liking to Anna as Abraham had, particularly Hamilton. Anna was convinced he went out of his way to make her life on the _Providence_ a lot more difficult than it needed to be. On more than one occasion he had purposefully sabotaged her job, having her do it again.

There was one particular night when the majority of the crew were below deck winding down after dinner, Anna was given the job to mop the main deck. She had been up there for over an hour working alone until she had almost finished. Until Hamilton came up from below with particularly filthy boots and walked all across the deck to the other side of the ship, a smirk on his face the entire time.

Anna's face turned red with anger as she furiously started scrubbing the dirt away again. She desperately wanted to say something to him, to put him in his place for acting so irrationally. But Kristoff had warned her not to cause any trouble for fear that both of them would be left at the next port. He had vouched for her after all, so if anything went wrong with her it was on his head. Kristoff didn't entirely mind that, though. She was his best friend and he knew, no matter how difficult it may be for her in the current situation, she was trying her best to keep a level head.

Hamilton seemed to be Anna's only real problem with regards to the crew. The rest of them more or less were getting along alright with her. She was making a few friends during her time on the ship and the rest of them tolerated her, so she wasn't doing too bad on the social side of things.

They had been on the ship for 37 days now without hitting land and Summer was fast approaching. The weather was becoming unbearably hot as they made their way across the North Atlantic Ocean towards their destination. It would still take them a few weeks yet, but they would eventually make it to Jamaica, where they would stop for a while, rest up and restock their supplies.

Anna was both a little disappointed and rather relieved that they had not run into any trouble so far. Hopefully they would make it to Jamaica in one piece. She had no idea it would take so long to get there and truth be told, it was all getting a little too tedious for her. She was feeling more and more homesick every day. She missed the small cottage where she grew up. She missed the bustling market place. She missed the tavern where she spent many a day having drinks with Kristoff. She missed her mother. And she missed Elsa.

It was a particularly hot day, one where it was near impossible to move due to the heat, when Anna was lazing about on deck. She was leaning on the edge of the ship, looking out into the ocean. Kristoff was beside her.

"So, did you ever think this would be so exciting?" Anna asked him, the sarcasm in her voice more than obvious.

"I'm sorry, Anna," Kristoff sighed. "I didn't think it would be this bad." He felt guiltier by the second. Anna had told him everything that happened between her and Elsa. And she left her behind so she could join him on this Godforsaken overgrown boat to do nothing meaningful whatsoever.

He had promised her adventure and riches and all she had gotten was unbearably hot weather and a bunch of grouchy men.

His gaze lowered to the water directly below them as the ship sailed through it.

The pair were silent for a few moments until Anna spoke up.

"What's that?"

Kristoff pulled himself out of his daydream and looked up to where Anna's gaze was directed. There was something in the distance. It was small and it was faint. But it was definitely there. And it was coming towards them.

The crew who had been up in the rigging had spotted it also. Everyone was on high alert as the possible threat came closer.

Captain Patrick Tanner emerged from his cabin as soon as he had been alerted. The Captain was a tall, middle aged man with a constantly stern look upon his face. His dark blonde hair and beard were greying in places and his face was weather worn. Evidently he had spent many a year at sea.

He approached the edge of the ship, near Kristoff and Anna, with an outwardly calm demeanor. If he was at all worried about this ship in the slightest, he was showing no sign.

"It's Edwards." The Captains voice sounded as rough as he looked. The Quartermaster, who was now standing beside the Captain, looked at him with astonishment.

"Captain?" He asked, "How could you possibly know?"

"I have had many encounters with that man over the years, Robert. I know him when I see him." Captain Tanner had not once taken his eyes of the figure that was advancing towards them.

"Then what should we do?"

"We fight. I want that man dead, Robert. And I plan on doing so myself."

Anna immediately tensed up at the announcement of fighting. Sure, she could handle herself well enough. But she'd never been in a real fight before. Not one where her actual life would be endangered. This was all new territory to her and she was terrified.

"Hey," Kristoff offered her a small smile. "You'll be alright. If we stick together we'll be okay."

Captain Tanner started barking orders to the crew as each of them prepared for battle.

The _Providence _turned in the waters and was steered towards the oncoming threat. This was their job after all; diminish the threat. And that included pirates.

Anna had heard of Captain Edwards. He was quite the notorious pirate. She had no idea of the apparent feud between him and Captain Tanner though. She had no time to wonder about it however, as the ship came ever closer to that of the pirate's.

Anna and Kristoff, along with most of the crew, readied themselves on deck with their swords, pistols, rifles, daggers and any other type of weapon they may possess.

Once the _Providence _was angled properly, Captain Tanner shouted his orders and round shots were immediately fired out of the Broadside Cannons.

The noise was deafening. Anna had never heard anything quite so loud. But it would be something she would need to get used to... assuming she survived this encounter.

Edwards' ship took the hit full on. But it didn't do enough damage to slow them down. And before the canons were loaded again to fire another shot, it was Edwards' turn. Anna could hear him shouting, they were that close now, and again she heard the deafening sound of canons. This time however, it was the _Providence_ that took the hit. Being so close to the initial shot, the ship took a fair amount of damage and Anna nearly fell down upon impact. She would have hit the floor had Kristoff not grabbed her by the arm and held her as upright as he could without himself falling over.

"THEY'RE BOARDING!" The Captain barked. "GET READY FOR COMBAT!"

And, sure enough, now the ships were side by side, the pirates had placed numerous wooden planks between their ship and the _Providence_ and were making their way across them towards the Privateering crew.

Anna was petrified to say the least. She stood their, alongside Kristoff, sword out and ready for battle. She could do this. She had sparred with Kristoff plenty over the years, she was no stranger to a sword.

But then again, that was only training. They did that mostly for fun. This was terrifyingly real. Nevertheless she mentally prepared herself as best she could in the seconds she had left before she was under attack.

And then someone was coming for her. He was large, extremely so... he towered above Anna. His dark skin was covered in battle scars. Evidently he was no stranger to physical conflict.

He ran towards Anna, his enormous arm raised above his head, sword in hand. He swung the sword at her, intent to kill, but Anna swiftly moved out of the sword's oncoming path. The years of training with Kristoff had proved that Anna's strong point was her speed. She was small and spry which made her difficult to hit, and Anna knew how to use it to her advantage.

"Little girl knows how to move!" The man yelled at her in a strong Jamaican accent. Anna only grimaced, awaiting his next move, sword at the ready. He ran towards her again, holding his sword in the same position above his head and getting ready to bring it down upon her once more.

Anna was prepared for it yet again as she rolled to the side and easily out of his way. This only angered the large pirate as he growled at her and did it once more. And, yet again, Anna easily dodged the sword. This man, as large and powerful as he was, was limited in movement. He wasn't anywhere near as quick as Anna and it only enraged him more that he couldn't seem to hit her.

He roared as he swung for her one more time. He was slowing down and tiring out, Anna could tell. He straightened himself upright and, before she could even think about what she was doing, Anna brought her own sword up and struck him deep in the stomach.

He stumbled backwards and spluttered, blood coming from his mouth. Anna pulled her sword from his body and he fell to his knees, blood splattering the deck of the ship. Anna was too stunned to move now as she watched this man dying in front of her. Dying by her hand.

She stood, frozen to the spot as she watched the life leave his body, oblivious to anything happening around her.

She didn't hear the Quartermaster of the enemy ship shout "CAPTAIN DOWN! RETREAT!"

She didn't notice the remaining pirates, their numbers now significantly fewer than to begin with, leave the _Providence_ and run to the safety of their own ship.

She didn't hear the cheers and shouts of victory.

She didn't watch as the pirate ship sailed away, now significantly damaged and slower than when it had first come upon them.

All Anna could notice was the man laying on the floor in front of her. He was dead. He was dead and she had killed him. She hadn't meant to... had she? All she knew was that she was defending herself. She was defending herself from this man who intended to kill her... and she only ended up killing him instead.

Kristoff had run up to her, shouting something about winning and a mixed look of relief and happiness on his face, but she could not register him.

"Anna? Anna?! Are you okay?" Kristoff was in front of her now, grabbing onto her shoulders and trying to shake her out of her stupor.

She tried to focus on him but it was becoming increasingly difficult as her vision blurred. She opened her mouth to try and speak to him but no sound could come out. Her throat tightened and her heart raced as breathing became difficult for her. She lost her balance and would have fallen straight to the floor had Kristoff not had a strong hold of her.

She could feel his arm around her and she was vaguely aware of him leading her somewhere. She lost consciousness and blacked out before they got to wherever they were going.

She woke up in her hammock below deck. The room was empty apart from herself and Kristoff. He was sat by her side, worry written all over his face.

"Anna thank God you're awake!" he said as soon as she opened her eyes. "What happened? Are you injured?! Where are you hurt? Are you gonna be alright?!" Anna had never heard Kristoff sound so worried about anything before. "Gods, I'm so sorry! I should never have brought you on here! It was too dangerous, you could have died! I'm sorry, Anna, I'm so sorry!"

Anna noticed his face was wet. He'd been crying. Kristoff had been sat at her bedside, crying softly and willing her to wake up. He thought she'd been seriously injured.

"Kristoff..." she whispered weakly to get his attention.

"What is it, Anna, what happened?!" He gripped one of her hands with both of his.

"He's dead," was all she could manage.

"What?! Who's dead? Anna, What's wrong?!" The worry in Kristoff's voice was unbearable to Anna. She hated what she was doing to him. She wanted to assure him that she was fine... physically at least.

"Pirate," she whispered. "He's dead... be- because of... me." She was finding it hard to speak, too distraught at what she had done. But she carried on, desperate to explain to her panicked best friend what had just occurred on deck. "I... I killed someone, Kristoff. I didn't even... have time... to... to think about it. It just... It just h-happened."

She stopped speaking and searched his face for any sign of reaction. Kristoff seemed too stunned to speak for a moment. He then let out a sigh of relief, much to Anna's confusion. He must have noticed her confused expression as he said to her,  
"as long as you're okay, Anna. I was worried you were really hurt."

He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her into a hug and she lost it. Before she could stop herself, she was sobbing into his shoulder. He held her tight and put a large hand on the back of her head, stroking her hair gently.

"Hey, Anna, it's okay. It's totally okay," he spoke softly. "I know it must be really difficult on you right now, but it's all okay. You didn't have any other choice and that guy would have killed you if he had half the chance. You were only saving your own life and no one blames you for that."

Anna could do nothing but hold onto her best friend and continue sobbing. After a few minutes, she eventually calmed down, his words having a soothing affect on her. He was right, she knew, but it didn't make this any easier on her. She had taken someone's life. Never in her life had she ever thought she'd be in such a situation where someone would actually _die_ because of her. It had all been a little too much to take in.

Kristoff gently pulled himself away from her and looked her in the eye. "It's okay, Anna, I promise," he said, his voice still low and soft.

She sniffed, now calmed down for the most part. She could still hear the distant cheering of the crew up above on deck.

"Did we win?" she asked meekly.

"Damn right we won!" Kristoff exclaimed. "Those pirates never stood a chance! You should have seen our Captain, Anna, he was amazing! He took on Captain Edwards by himself and he basically slaughtered him within five minutes! I honestly don't know why they thought it'd be a good idea to attack us head on like that. We outnumbered them ten-to-one easily... wow Anna... we won!"

Kristoff stopped and his cheeks turned a faint shade of pink as he realised he'd been rambling.

"Heh... sorry... I just... wow... it was... exciting... I guess..." he raised his hand and rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment as he tried to find the right words to say. "Umm... so... are you gonna be... okay?"

Anna gave him a small smile.  
"I think so..." She wasn't entirely sure whether she was going to be okay or not but for now, she wanted to give Kristoff peace of mind.

"Good, you know I worry about you."

"I know. Don't worry Kristoff, I'll be alright. I'm just a bit shook up from it all I guess. I'll be okay, honest. I just need to toughen up a bit is all." She half heartedly shrugged.

"Well, I reckon the rest of the crew will be getting ready to have some celebratory drinks soon," Kristoff explained. "What d'ya say? Come join us and have a drink... take your mind off things?"

Anna thought it over. A few drinks down her could ease her mind and she deserved it, didn't she, after what she'd just been through?

"Definitely!" she replied and she moved to get up and followed Kristoff out and up towards where the rest of the crew were currently celebrating, ready to drink the night away.

* * *

_May, 1713._

The past few weeks, since Anna's departure, had been strenuous for Elsa, to say the least. Elsa's 21st birthday was drawing ever closer and there was a lot of preparations to be made. Her parents had insisted on hosting an excessively large social event for the occasion. Elsa couldn't understand why they making such a fuss over it.

She barely had any time to herself nowadays. Her tutors were pushing her harder than ever seeing as, once she turned 21, she would no longer require their services. They seemed to be drilling as much last minute knowledge into her head as possible.

Her Mother had assigned her a dancing teacher. Once a week, on a Friday afternoon, she was to meet him in the large hall of the Manor and for one hour he would teach her all kinds of ballroom dances.

An additional tutor has been employed as well, this one by her father. She arrived at the Manor twice a week, on Saturday and Wednesday mornings, and would sit with Elsa for two hours at a time to teach her social etiquette. Of course, Elsa knew all of this. She was taught it as a child and was rather embarrassed that this woman had been assigned to teach her it all again. She supposed her father wanted to make sure there would be absolutely no slip ups, considering how socially inept she could be.

And then there was the meetings with her father. After the sudden snow storm incident, he made time to see her at least twice a week to have a talk about her powers. The first meeting he had obtained a rather expensive and lovely looking pair of gloves for her. He had given them to his daughter, telling her they would keep her powers under control, keep them confined. She had forced herself to believe him. She convinced herself that as long as she had these gloves on, she would have no accidents. As long as she wore them to her birthday party, the guests would be safe.

Elsa had figured something was up. All this training; her father was preparing her. She guessed he was setting her up to meet potential suitors on the evening of her birthday.

Elsa shuddered at thought. It was late Saturday night and she should have retired to bed hours ago. She'd been having trouble sleeping as of late though, more so than usual.

The evenings, after dinner with her parents, were the only time Elsa had to herself to wind down and relax. But of course she couldn't relax. Once she was in the safe confinements of her bed chamber, that's when the anxiety would take control. As soon as the door was closed, she would slide down onto the floor against it, and hide her face in her knees as she was suddenly overwhelmed with everything that was happening to her.

Every night she would sit there, finding it increasingly difficult to breathe as she thought about everything.

She didn't want her birthday to arrive. She was never going to be prepared for this social event, despite her Father's best efforts. Her social anxiety crippled her to the point where she found it so hard to even look people in the eye, let alone talk to them. Her talking was usually reduced to a stuttered mumble. She never knew what to say, or how to respond to people's questions and statements.

She was finding it harder and harder to keep up with seeing everyone each week. Having extra lessons with her tutors, dancing lessons, and etiquette lessons were all taking their toll on Elsa. Every minute of the day was spent with somebody. She had absolutely no time to herself and it was having an astounding negative affect on her mental health.

And then there was Anna. Throughout the day she had no time to spare to think about how Anna was. But as soon as the evening arrived and she was alone, sitting against her bedroom door, Anna would force her way to the forefront of her thoughts.

Elsa would sit there, never ending tears falling from her face as she worried about the woman she had such sudden and strong feelings for. No one knew, of course, about Anna. So she had no one to vent her feelings of worry to. All she could do was sit and think and hope that Anna was safe.

Between her birthday anxiousness and worrying for Anna's safety, Elsa just couldn't take it. As she sat and wept each and every night, a full blown snow storm would reside in her room. Snow and hail would swirl around violently, pelting every surface within the confined space for hours at a time.

By the time Elsa would calm herself down, the first rays of the sun's light were just about visible through the crack in her balcony door curtains. She was usually too tired at this point to even drag herself to bed and, more often than not, the maid would come to wake her the next morning only to find the young woman slumped behind the other side of the door, still in the previous day's clothes.

Elsa, to say the least, was feeling completely overwhelmed.

* * *

**Oh Lord, I have made a return! After almost a year oh my god! My girlfriend has warned me that she's going to give me a beating if I don't keep on top of the story now aha oh my! :') I will do my best though! The last few months have just been really quite difficult for me and I've had absolutely no time to write though, so i apologise for that. I am back now though and I am motivated to get on with this bloody fic! Ehhh lemme know what you all think of this chapter 'cause I'm not feeling too great about it tbh. Feedback is always welcome. Thanks for reading, and sorry again for being a pain with this story :c**


	7. Chapter 7

_June, 1713._

Day 72 on the _Providence_. It had been weeks since the encounter with the Pirates and Anna was still having nightmares. They had subsided quite a bit since they had first started. She used to awake near enough each and every night in a cold sweat, the man's face haunting her dreams. The man she had killed. Now though, it had reduced to about twice a week.

They would be due to dock in Jamaica in just over a week's time and it could not come quick enough for Anna. She needed to get off this ship, it was sending her stir crazy. Perhaps she wasn't cut out for this sort of work after all.

Kristoff, on the other hand, was thriving on this ship. He was built for this sort of work. He had no problems doing any sort of job to help keep the ship going and obviously the pirate experience had not deterred him either. He had done well in that fight, having severly injured two pirates and even killing another. Although he insisted to Anna he didn't like how it had felt to take someone's life, she knew it had nowhere near the same effect on him as it had on her. He was dealing with it so much better than she was.

And he got along with absolutely everybody with the exception of perhaps Hamilton, but nobody really got on with him. It was safe to say that Kristoff had found his new life calling as a Privateer. Anna was happy for him but couldn't help feeling envious of her best friend. Kristoff had ensured her that she was just taking a little longer to get used to it than he was. But she knew that wasn't the case, Anna just wasn't built for this. That was all there was to it.

After the conflicting meeting with Captain Edwards and the pirate crew, the _Providence _had come across a small fleet of Spanish Merchant ships not too far off the coast of Puerto Rico. The Spanish Merchants never stood a chance, despite outnumbering the _Providence._ Captain Tanner's ship was large, powerful and armed. The Merchants could do nothing but surrender once they were under attack. Small groups were assigned to board each vessel and plunder whatever they could on board.

Afterwards, the _Providence _sailed away victorious after the crew had collected food, alcohol, trade items and money. Anna knew she should feel bad about what they had done but technically the Spanish were the enemy. This was what she was being paid to do. And what a payday it was. Each member of the crew was given a significant amount of money after the plunder, which seemed to prove the weeks spent on the ship had been worth it.

* * *

After 81 days at sea, they finally reached their destination. Anna was overwhelmed with relief as she took her first step off the _Providence_ and onto solid land. She felt a hand on her shoulder and looked up to see Kristoff smiling down at her.

"Come on," he said, "Let's go find the tavern and get some well deserved drinks down us."

Anna grinned up at him.  
"I couldn't agree more!"

And with that, they made their way with the rest of the crew towards the tavern for some well deserved rest and relaxation.

After about an hour of drinking and general conversation amongst the crew, the Captain stood up and shouted for everyone's attention.

"Listen to me, men!" Captain Tanner called above the commotion of the tavern. "And woman," he added looking towards Anna. She smiled brightly at him and everyone remained silent as their Captain continued.

"A rather important bit of news has been brought to my attention and it's something that affects us all greatly. Recently, after we left Arendelle and made our way here, a series of treatys has been signed. The Treaty of Utrecht is now in place and the War of the Spanish Succession is now officially over. The conflict between the major empires has ended. Which means, basically, we are out of a job."

A series of disgruntled moans came from the crew. Despite the peace which had been enacted, the majority were miserable that they would no longer be getting paid and would now have to head back home again.

Anna, however, felt a sense of excitement. This meant she would be heading back to Arendelle soon. Back to Elsa. She couldn't suppress the almighty grin that appeared on her face as she thought about the blonde woman who had stolen her heart.

She looked up back to the Captain as he continued on with his speech.

"We will stay docked in Jamaica for a few weeks before we head back out to Arendelle again," he continued. "There's no use getting back on that ship right away, we all deserve a decent break. Consider it a holiday. We will set sail on the morning of July the 11th, so don't miss your ride back home, lads.. and lady."

And with that, the Captain sat back down again and everyone continued to drink into the night.

* * *

The next day, Anna awoke to the early morning sun streaming through the window of the Inn bedroom she was sharing with Kristoff. He was still sound asleep, snoring away in the bed at the other side of the room.

With the bright sunlight and the horrendous noise errupting from Kriftoff's mouth, Anna knew it was hopeless trying to fall back to sleep. Her head pounded with the inevitable hangover she had obtained.

With the hopes that some fresh air might help, Anna got dressed and headed outside to face the day. She was wrong. The hot weather and the bright sunlight only made her headache and nausea worse. She made her way down to the beach in hopes of finding a nice shady area to sit down away from any bright sunlight and noise.

Anna found just the spot she was looking for. After a twenty minute barefoot walk along the sand, she arrived the bottom of a cliff. With the sun still low in the clear morning sky, it was angled at the other side of the cliff, creating a large area of shade; it was perfect.

She sat down with her back towards the town and looked out at the ocean, feeling exhausted. It wasn't long before she fell back into the sand and was sound asleep yet again.

* * *

For the second time that day, Anna was woken by the sun. It had risen high in the sky now, indicating it to be around midday. The few hours of sleeping on the beach had made Anna feel somewhat better. Her headache still remained but the only thing wrong with her stomach now was the fact that it was empty.

As luck would have it, Anna spotted a delicous looking oyster that seemed to have been wedge between the cliff face and a large rock down on the beach. She picked it up and inspected it, impressed with how large it actually was. Pulling her knife from its leather sheath attached to her belt, Anna used it to pry open the oyster. After a few seconds of fiddling, it prised open and Anna was taken aback by what she found within it.

A rather large and elegant looking blue pearl had formed inside. Anna was completely amazed. She had never seen a pearl so beautiful before. She could get a really high price for one such as this if she decidd to sell it. Anna had a better idea though. She knew exactly what to do with it.

She discarded the clam on the floor, completely forgetting about her hunger, and headed back along the beach and towards the town, a smile on her face the entire time.

* * *

Kristoff plodded down the stairs and into the bar of the Inn with the intention of purchasing himself some sort of high calorie breakfast to help heal his hangover. He had awoken in the early afternoon to find Anna's bed empty but didn't worry too much about her absence. She could take care of herself, he knew.

Sure enough, there she was safe and sound sat at one of the tables, with a slice of toast and cup of coffee. Coffee seemed like a great idea to Kristoff, and so he ordered himself a cup and went to join his friend. She hadn't noticed him until he sat down as she was too absorbed in writing something.

"Oh, hey Kristoff," she greeted, looking up at him as he sat.

"Hey," he replied. "What're doing?"

Anna blushed slightly at the question and looked down towards what she had been writing.  
"Oh, just... writing a letter home."

"To your mother?"

Anna blushed even more as Kristoff inquired further.

"Not exactly... no... um, this letter... it's for Elsa."

Kristoff grinned at Anna's confession.

"Oh aye, you sure got it bad for this girl, huh? Only been here a day and you're already sending a letter to her."

Anna's face was now a furious shade of red. She drank deeply from her coffee cup, trying with all her might to hide herself.

"I just... I really... I mean, I _really _like this girl, Kristoff," Anna mumbled. "She's special."

Kristoff did nothing but grin at his friend as she sat there in front of him and stuttered some sort of explanation of her feelings. He could tell she was completely head over heels for Elsa. And apparently, from what she'd told him, Elsa felt the same. He only hoped that Anna wouldn't get hurt. She had a tendency to get hurt when she fell for someone.

Anna's problem was that she was just too nice for her own good. She was such a kind, caring person and she had so much love to give. And she would always look past a person's faults, refusing to believe they were there. And in doing so, she had always gotten herself hurt. She had been left heartbroken too many times and Kristoff had always been there to pick up the pieces. He didn't want to see that happen again. And so, despite how much he wanted this to work out for Anna and how happy he was for, he was still wary about this relationship... if one could really call it that. All they had done so far was kiss one time. All he wanted was his best friend to be in a nice happy stable relationship, because Anna was such a hopeless romantic, it was the least she deserved. And so, he prayed that this could all work out well for her... somehow.

"Oh hey! I wanna show you something!" Anna's sudden exclamation pulled him out of his thoughts. He turned his attention to her as she pulled something out of her pocket.

Kristoff gave an audible gasp as he saw what she had. It was a pearl... a large, _extremely_ expensive looking, blue tinted pearl.

"Gods, Anna, where the hell did you get this?!" he asked, completely mindblown at what he was looking at.

"I found it this morning on the beach," she explained as she handed it over to him to examine more closely.

"Good Lord... do you have any idea how much this is worth?!" Kristoff asked as he inspected it.

"No idea... why, do you?"

"Honestly, Anna, I could not put a price on this. Pearls are expensive enough as it is but this... it's near enough perfectly circular and it's blue! Do you have any idea how rare a coloured pearl is?! Jesus, Anna... if you sold this... wow... that would be a pretty life changing amount of money for you!"

He handed it back to her as she contemplated what he had just said.

"Yeah well," she said, "I'm not going to sell it."

"WHAT?!" Kristoff was surprised to say the least.

"Nah, I'm giving it to Elsa."

"ANNA NO!"

"Why not," Anna frowned at Kristoff's response.

"Think about this... I mean, _really_ think about this logically. This thing could get you so much money you wouldn't know what to do with it all! And you want to give it to this girl you've only just met!" Kristoff ranted. "Not to mention Elsa probably already has more than enough money and jewelry. She doesn't need this thing, she's rich! _You_ need it. This would really help you out financially, Anna."

"I don't care," Anna shrugged. "I want her to have it. I want her to have something to remember me by until I get home."

"Well, if you want to get her something, go down to the market and buy her a souvenir! You don't need to send her _this_! I'm certain she'd be happy with some cheap market tack." Kristoff was trying with all his might to reason with the lovesick woman in front of him. But Anna was having none of it.

"Nah, it's just not the same," was all Anna said. "This is special, like her. I can't get her tack because she's not tack. You see my point?"

Kristoff sighed. He knew he would never be able to get through to her. She really had fallen for Elsa.

"Well I gotta go!" Anna announced, and she downed the rest of her coffee and stood from her seat. "See ya, Kristoff... I'll be back soon." And with that she turned and left the Inn.

Anna searched around for a Courier boy to give the letter to. She had sealed it and the pearl inside an envelope and wanted to send it to Elsa as soon as possible.

When she finally came across one near the docks she approached him.

"Hey, kid" she said as she walked up to him.

The boy, who appeared to be about fourteen years old, had dark brown hair that looked almost black in contrast with his very pale skin. He turned to her as she walked up to him.

"Yes?!" he replied with a cheerful grin on his face.

"I have something I'd like to be delivered. Where abouts are you headed?" Anna inquired.

"London, Miss. I'll be headed off on this 'ere ship later this evening." The boy was still looking overly cheerful as he explained to Anna.

"Oh great! You think after you've docked in London you could get another ship and sail to Arendelle, Norway? It shouldn't take too long to get there from England. I'd be willing to pay whatever the cost."

"Oh, of course, Miss! Who would I be taking it to?"

"Miss Elsa Kristiansen of Arendelle Manor. Her father is the Lord of Arendelle so you shouldn't have too much trouble finding where she lives once you get there," Anna explained to the boy. "And I'd like to pay you upfront right now. I have enough... this is a gift so I don't want her to have to pay anything towards delivery okay?"

"Yes, Miss, that's fine!" the boy exclaimed, seemingly excited about an advanced payment for his work.

Anna handed over the letter and paid the boy. As he was travelling such a distance, it cost her most of her share from the Spanish Merchant plunder. She might have to even find work while she was here in order to pay to feed herself. But that was a worry for another time, Anna thought.

"By the way, what's your name?" she asked out of interest.

"Olaf! My name is Olaf, Miss! And might I ask yours?" Olaf replied, the bright smile still etched upon his face.

"My name is Anna, it was really nice to meet you, Olaf. And thank you so much for doing this! It really means a lot to me that Elsa gets this letter."

"Don't you worry about that, Miss Anna! I will make sure Miss Elsa gets this letter no matter what!"

Anna bid another thank you and goodbye to Olaf and made her way towards the market place of the town to browse the stalls and wondered what she would do with the rest of her month in Jamaica.

* * *

**Ahhhh look at me and my quick updates! Oh and you lucky readers will be getting another one soon. VERY SOON! As in later tonight. Yes, I am posting chapters 7 and 8 together. It was originally going to be one big chapter but I decided it was too long so I separated Anna's and Elsa's little bits. Next chapter will be purely an Elsa one. dont worry guys they'll be back together soon, i promise. couple more chapters i reckon. trust me, this elsanna separation is hard on me too. i need my bbys back together! Hope you enjoyed this. Elsa will have her chapter up very soon so stay tuned!**


	8. Chapter 8

**This is the second chapter I've posted tonight so if you're following the story, make sure you read chapters 7 and 8 together! :D**

**Just one more thing: I AM SO SO SO SORRY ABOUT THIS CHAPTER! I apologise in advance for what you're about to read.**

* * *

_July, 1713._

Elsa was sat, looking at her refelction in the mirror. This was it, the evening of her 21st birthday and she was only moments away from making her way down to the ballroom and attending an enormous party. Her nerves were getting the better of her as she tried desperately to compose herself.

There was a slight knock at her door.

"C-come in," Elsa replied, her voice shaking.

The door opened to reveal her mother, who walked across the room to where Elsa was sat.

"Are you ready?" she asked her daughter, a sense of pride all too evident in her voice.

"Not really," Elsa replied honestly, looking up towards her mother, the fear showing on her face.

Her mother stood behind her and put her hands upon Elsa's shoulders, giving them a light squeeze.

"Now, I know you're nervous, Elsa. But you can do this. There's a lot of people excited to see you and celebrate your birthday."

Elsa couldn't see how anyone would be excited to celebrate her birthday... she didn't know anybody. She had no friends to celebrate it with. She did not dwell on this, however, as she then remembered she would actually have to go and meet all of these people.

"It's going to be an eventful night for you," her mother continued. "Oh Elsa," she sniffed, "I am so proud of you. You have grown into such a beautiful, amazing young woman and I couldn't have asked for a better daughter."

"Really?" Elsa asked, seriously questioning what her mother had just told her. "Wouldn't you like a daughter who isn't awkward and nervous all the time? One who can actually talk to people?" Elsa tried hard not to shed any tears as she continued. "Wouldn't you like a daughter who was _normal_?!"

"Elsa, stand up." Her mother ordered softly. Elsa did so and turned to face her mother. "I wouldn't change you for the world," her mother said as she looked Elsa dead in the eye. "Despite your condition, it doesn't make me love you any less. It doesn't make me want a different daughter. I love you so much and I always will, no matter what."

Elsa's couldn't help giver her mother a small smile, even if she had referred to her powers as a _condition_. She wasn't _sick_. She just had a little something extra about her that no one else had. It wasn't a condition or a sickness. But, she thought, her mother would never understand. How could she? Elsa just had to live with that.

"Come now, your guests await." And with that, she accompanied her mother downstairs and towards the ballroom.

As Elsa walked alongside her mother, all she could think was that she'd give anything to have Anna escort her to this party rather than her mother.

_'If Anna were here, I would be able to get through tonight. Anna would help me. She would comfort me. I would be okay.'_

But Elsa had no idea where Anna was or when she would see her again. She missed the woman greatly and she longed to have her back in her company again. She _needed_ her.

And somehow, knowing that she would not see Anna for a very long time, made tonight feel all the more difficult to get through.

Elsa had never seen so many people all at once. The ballroom had been decorated for the occasion and there was a large, long table on one side of the room filled with various foods from around the world and some beverages. And the people... there were people everywhere. Elsa was feeling overwhelmed before she had even taken five steps into the room.

Her mother took her around for what seemed like hours, introducing her to a whole variety of different people. They were all of high class of course. Elsa thought the majority of them to be a bit too arrogant for her liking, but she tolerated talking to them all in order to keep her mother pleased.

After a couple of hours, Elsa had experienced far too much small talk to handle and was in desperate need of a drink.

"I want you to meet just one more couple," her mother said excitedly as Elsa mentioned her need to quench her thirst.

They approached an elderly couple. They were stood together, a glass of champagne each, looking unimpressed with the entire event.

They looked to be almost sneering at Elsa and her mother as they approached.

"Ah Lady Kristiansen," the woman greeted.

"Good Evening to the both of you," her mother greeted the couple in her usual polite manner.

"And this must be your daughter? Elise, is it?" she asked, looking at Elsa.

"Elsa, Your Grace."

"Ah yes... _Elsa_." This time the woman really did sneer as she said Elsa's name.

Her mother gave Elsa a look as if to persuade her to speak up and talk to the evidently important couple.

Elsa took a deep, shaky breath and said,  
"It's very nice to meet you, Your Graces."

"Speak up, girl!" the man barked at her, making Elsa jump. "You won't get anywhere in life talking like that!" His voice was rough and loud.

Breathing became difficult for Elsa and her hands started shaking and she lowered her gaze to the ground.

"I-I am sorry, Y-your Grace," Elsa stuttered. She was petrified of this man.

Before he could say another word, however, she heard a voice to her left.

"Father!" A young man called out as he approached them. "I do hope your not giving this beautiful young woman any trouble with your temper."

Elsa dared a glance up at the stranger who was standing with them now.

He was a handsome young man, who looked to be about the same age as Elsa. His friendly smile eased her fear a little and her hands stopped shaking.

"You'll have to forgive my father," he said as he walked closer up to Elsa. He bowed to her and took one of her hands in his, giving it a soft kiss. Elsa didn't quite know how to respond. She stood there, too stunned to speak as the charming young man stood up straight once more and continued.

"My name is Hans Anderson. Son of the Duke and Duchess of the Southern Isles, who I'm afraid you have already met." He gestured towards the elderly couple, his parents. "And you must be Elsa. I must say, it is an honour to be invited this evening and may I wish you the happiest of birthdays."

"Oh, th-thank you," Elsa managed to find her voice eventually. This man really did have a way with words.

He offered her his arm and Elsa looked worriedly towards her mother, as if asking what she should do. Her mother gave her a slight nod of the head and beamed at her. Elsa took Hans' arm and together they walked to the other side of the room towards the food table.

Hans had a smile on his face the entire time and offered Elsa a drink. She cautiously took a glass of wine from him and hastily drank from it, so as to have something to keep her busy and not stand there, awkwardly looking anywhere but at him.

"So, Miss Elsa... forgive me for repeating myself, but it really is an honour to be here tonight and to finally meet you."

Elsa looked up at him, having lost her voice yet again. She had never met such a charming young man before and she was having trouble finding what to say.

As the music played, Hans held his hand out to Elsa. "May I have this dance?" He asked, the everlasting smile on his face.

As she put her now empty glass down on the table, all Elsa could do was take his hand and force out a very quiet,  
"Of course."

He led her towards the dance floor. Elsa positioned herself as her dancing tutor had taught her. As he placed a hand on her waist, she placed one ever so lightly upon his shoulder. As charming as Hans was, physically touching him just felt so wrong and uncomfortable for her. She didn't like the feel of one of his hands on her body and the other one entwined with one of hers. His fingers gripped firmly onto her hand but hers didn't even touch his. She kept a very loose grip on him, wanting to touch him as little as she possibly could.

They started to sway around the room slowly as he looked at her, trying again to hold conversation.

"So," he started, obviously feeling the tension between them. Elsa was proving a difficultly shy person to talk to. "What's with the huge celebration?" He asked her.

"Oh, I um... I don't really know," Elsa tried her hardest to force herself to talk to him.

"Don't get me wrong," Hans tried not to sound too accusatory. "I am thrilled that you father decided to throw you a huge party for your birthday. I just wondered why now? I know your family have never really been ones for large social events."

Elsa tried to reply but all she managed was a half hearted awkward shrug.

Hans decided to drop the topic and they continued to dance for a while until they were interrupted by a rather short, elderly looking man.

"May I cut in?" He asked Hans rather forwardly.

"Of course, Your Grace," Hans replied and let go of Elsa. "Take good care of her. She is the Guest of Honour after all." Hans smiled in a rather smarmy way towards the newcomer, and walked away without another word.

"Good Evening, Miss Elsa," the small man greeted. He was extremely short, more so than even Elsa. His nose was too large for his face and the toupee atop his head was all too evident. Elsa had to really try hard not to laugh at the strange man's appearance.

"Evening, Your Grace," she replied, giving a small courtesy to the old man.

"I am the Duke of Wesleton," he introduced himself as he started dancing with Elsa. Elsa danced as subtly as possible as this Duke showed off his rather odd dance moves around her. She had never seen such a sprytly old man before. She spotted his toupee swaying about as he danced ever more radically.

"So, Miss Elsa... why, may I ask, is your father hosting such a large social event this evening?" He asked her, still dancing away. Why was everyone asking her this? Elsa didn't know the answer herself. The Duke of Wesleton sounded more suspicious than anything though, as he questioned her even further.

"I'm not sure, Your Grace. I mean, it is my birthday I suppose." Elsa replied truthfully.

"It seems a bit odd, you see... from an outsider's perspective." The Duke carried on with his accusations. "The majority of the people in this room have never even _seen_ you before and yet, here you are, having a huge celebration for _your _birthday. It just doesn't make sense. There's nothing _dubious_ going on here, is there?"

"What? O-of course n-not... I don't know w-what... you... m-mean." Elsa was starting to stutter, having trouble responding to what the Duke was saying. "Um... you'll have to... excuse me."

And with that, Elsa hurriedly made her way off the dance floor, not knowing whereabouts she was heading to. She just needed to get away from this suspicious old man. What was wrong with him? Why was he acting like something was really going on?

"Elsa? Where are you going?" She heard her father's voice as she unknowingly walked in his direction.

She stopped and looked up at him.  
"Um... I was just..."

He interrupted her before she could form an excuse.

"Come," He said simply. "Honour your father with a dance."

Elsa was truthfully feeling rather fed up with dancing this evening. But she could not deny her father of all people, and so she took his arm and they walked to the dance floor.

As they swayed together slowly in the middle of the room, her father sighed. There was something on his mind, something he wanted to say, she could tell.

And, just as she'd predicted, he spoke up.

"Elsa, I'm sorry," was all he said.

"What for?" She inquired.

"Everything. I just... I just want to explain something to you. You deserve a valid explanation for how I've acted your entire life." Elsa looked into his eyes and could see how sincere he really was.

"I've been too hard on you, I know that. But you must know, I did it for your own good. I know I've acted rather coldly towards you most of the time and you often must have thought that I didn't care about you, or even... that I didn't love you." Elsa had never heard him speak so softly before. She was taken aback to say the least, she'd never heard her father talk like this, especially to her.

"But I do love you Elsa, more than anything. You are my pride and joy and I am so happy to call you my daughter. All your life, everything I've done, was to protect you... from yourself. This... _disability_ you have... it's had a large impact on everyone's lives and it has been my duty as Lord to protect everyone, including yourself. That is why I have had to keep you away from people. That is why I have been so hard on you. Because I've always known you can overcome it and control it. It's just taken a lot of hard work, but you have proven yourself more than capable."

He concluded his speech as he took hold of her chin with his finger and thumb and smiled at his only daughter.

"You have grown into such an amazing young woman, Elsa, and I am so proud of you. I really, really am. And I love you _so_ _much_."

He sighed once more and wrapped his arms around her, giving her a firm hug. Elsa couldn't remember the last time her father had hugged her and so, she was momentarily stunned. Eventually she put her arms around him and spoke softly.  
"I love you too, father."

As they parted, her father was still smiling.  
"Now prepare yourself, Elsa, and follow me. I am going to make a small birthday speech in your honour in just a moment."

And with that, he turned on his heel and headed towards the top end of the room to address the guests.

Elsa followed him and grabbed a glass of champagne from a waiter as she passed. Something told her she would need some alcohol to help her through this speech. She stood at the edge of the raised platform which had been built into the room for occasions such as this.

Her father cleared his throat loudly and called out for everyone's attention.

"Ladies and Gentlemen!" he called. "If I could just have a moment of your time to make an announcement in honour of this evening."

The music stopped playing and everyone in the room ceased their talking, turning to listen to Lord Kristiansen. Elsa took a quick sip of champagne.

"Now, as you know, today is a very special occasion for my only daughter," he gestured towards Elsa. She stood silently and blushed a little as people all over the room turned to glance at her. Elsa noticed Hans stood at the other side of the platform, and he smiled at her as her father continued.

"Tonight marks her 21st birthday and I couldn't be happier with how my daughter as turned out." He paused for a moment as people started clapping politely to Elsa. "But I must admit, tonight is about more than just her birthday. I have a special little announcement to make. Elsa, if you could join me up here please."

Elsa did as her father asked and, ever so nervously, she walked up and stood next to her father. She hated this. Every single face in the room was upon her. Many people looked pleased and happy to see her, others were looking suspenseful as they awaited for the next part of the announcement. Some, however just looked bored. Whatever the expression on their faces though, they were all looking at Elsa and she had never felt more uncomfortable in her life.

"Now, Elsa, you have reached your 21st year. I have organised a little surprise for you." He turned his attention back towards the crowd. "Tonight I would likely to proudly announce the merger of two nations. The joining of two families. The coming together of a new couple. As of tonight, my daughter is now officially engaged to Hans Anderson, of the Southern Isles!"

Elsa almost dropped her glass as he said this. She suddenly gripped it hard so as not to let go as all she could think was,  
'_No! Anna! I can't marry this man! What would that do to Anna?!_'

Hans had now joined them on the platform, standing at her father's other side. After everyone clapped for the newly engaged couple, Hans grinned and bowed at everyone. He was absolutely loving this.

"The date of the wedding is set for three months time on October the 9th. With this merger, once I step down as Lord of Arendelle in a few years time, Hans will take my place and will rule with my daughter by his side. I could not think of anyone more capable than this young man for the job and I am proud to welcome him into my family. I do hope you can all attend the wedding and I look forward to seeing you all then!"

As the music started up again and the guests went back to chatter and dancing, Elsa looked down into her glass. She noticed her fingertips starting to frost over on the outside of her gloves and her champagne was starting to freeze. Her father looked down and saw what was happening. He quickly lead her off to the side of the room and through a door that opened into a hallway. It was empty, much to both Elsa and her father's relief. The door shut behind him and he turned to his daughter, anger written all over his face.

"Elsa what on earth are you doing?!" He tried to keep his voice down so as not to rouse anyone's attention, but his fury was making it difficult for him. "You are making a show of yourself and me! You're lucky nobody else noticed! After everything I've down for you and all the work I have put into the merger with The Southern Isles and now you're acting like this!" His face was getting redder and his voice was raising even louder, he was almost shouting. "Well, explain yourself!" he demanded.

Elsa couldn't say anything. She tried but she was so fearful of her father in that moment, nothing would come out. All she could do was silently plead for him to understand how she was feeling. What this engagement was doing to her.

"ELSA!" He actually shouted this time. And what he did next shocked them both. Elsa felt a sharp sudden pain on the left side of her face as her father raised his hand and slapped her across the cheek. The champagne glass she had still been holding was dropped and shattered as it hit the ground.

Elsa immediately raise a hand to her face, clutching it where her father had struck her.

Har father sighed as he realised what he had done. "I'm sorry, Elsa," he said a little more softly this time, "but we _need _this. Arendelle _needs _this." He explained, trying to justify what he had just done. "You must understand, Arendelle has no army. A merger with The Southern Isles will give us the army that we need in order to defend ourselves against anything. What if a foreign threat decided to attack? Hell, even if a pirate ship docked here and decided to cause some havoc, we don't even have enough guards to defend ourselves from that. The town would be in ruins."

Elsa sniffed as she fought back the tears threatening to fall down her face. She knew her father was right. But it didn't make her any less reluctant to marry Hans.

And, just at that moment, Hans appeared through the door that they had used to enter the hallway.

"Is everything alright in here?" He asked, concern all over his face.

"Yes, Hans, everything is fine," Lord Kristiansen replied, his voice now calm.

"Sorry to interrupt but may I have a moment with my... _fiancée_?" he asked, smiling as he said that last word.

Elsa actually felt nauseated as he spoke, the tone of his voice making her feel uneasy.

"Of course. Elsa," he turned to his daughter once more. "Think about what I have just said okay." And with that, he left to re-attend the party in the ballroom.

"Hello, _Darling_," Hans greeted as he walked up to Elsa. "Hope that little announcement didn't shock you too much." His voice, his facial expressions, his entire manner had changed. He seemed so different to the charming young man she had met only an hour ago.

He stalked around her, looking her up and down, not even trying to be subtle. Elsa felt absolutely violated at the way he was looking at her, hunger evident in his eyes. "You really a pretty little thing," he said, now standing in front of her again. "I simply cannot _wait _for our wedding night."

Elsa's breathing became difficult as he talked to her.

"_I _am going to become the new Lord of Arendelle and _you_... well, you will be my _wife_. It will soon be your job to do exactly what I say... to do _exactly _what I want you to do." Elsa's heart was beating frantically now, fear taking over her completely. Her glove fingertips were frosting over once more, as was the spot on the carpet where she was stood.

"Oh and... we'll be having less of this as well," Hans said as he brought his face right up to Elsa's. She could feel his breath as he spoke, smell the alcohol that he had been consuming that night.

She gasped as she realised what he had just said. Did he know about her powers? He seemed to.

"Oh yes, your father has informed all about your little... _condition_. And you can be sure that it won't be happening once we are married. No, no, no, that just won't do." He brought his mouth right down to her ear as he whispered calmly, "I have had something made to help you, should you ever have any little mishaps like this again. Once I move into Arendelle Manor, I will be bringing along some special shackles to keep you from doing any more slip ups. With those around your hands, you will become _powerless_. Chaining you up will teach you to control yourself."

Elsa was visibly shaking now as he explained this to her.

He brought his face down to her cheek and kissed her softly on the very corner of her mouth. Elsa cringed when she felt his lips on her face. As he pulled away, tears silently started to fall down her cheeks.

Hans was smiling. But not the warm, charming smile he had worn when they first met. No, this smile was harsh and smug. It was... _evil_.

He chuckled as he turned and walked back to the door.

As soon as the door closed behind him, Elsa ran. She ran down the hallway, up the main staircase and headed towards her bedroom.

As soon as she was in the safety of her room, her legs gave way beneath her and she collapsed down the back of the door, sobbing.

How could tonight have gone so wrong? How could her parents allow her to marry such a... _a monster_?!

It took her a while to calm down and gather enough strength to even stand up. As she finally raised herself off the ground, Elsa realised she would need to straighten out her appearance and head back to her party. A thought that absolutely terrified her.

As she was about to make her way to her mirror, she noticed something laying on her bed.

She walked towards it and realised it was an envelope, probably a last minute birthday message.

'_Gerda must have left it here for me,_' Elsa thought, reminding herself to thank the maid when she next saw her.

Elsa picked up the envelope, which was heavier than expected, and opened it.

What she found inside took her breath away. She gently pulled out a large, blue tinted pearl. It was absolutely beautiful. Of all the jewellery Elsa had seen in her life, which was _a lot_, nothing compared to this. She wondered who on earth could have sent this to her, before she picked up the letter that accompanied it and started to read.

_My Dearest Elsa,_

_I have arrived in Jamaica and oh my goodness, it is hot over here! I'm sat at the Inn writing this on my first morning here. Having spent months on a ship, I'm glad to be on dry land once more. Last night I heard about the Treaty of Utrecht which now renders me out of a job as a Privateer. The Captain has announced we'll be spending a few weeks here before we set sail again and head straight back to Arendelle. By the time you get this, I'll be already on my way home!_

_I went for a walk on the beach this morning and found a tasty looking clam to snack on. But to my surprise look what I found! It's lovely, isn't it? I thought I would send it to you as something to remember me by until I get home. The colour reminded me of your eyes. I hope you like it!_

_I really miss you, Elsa. I think about you every single day. The memory I have of that night I left... it's the only thing that got me through all those nights on the ship. It was difficult, the things I had to do. But I got through it, with the thought that I would come home to you soon. And now I will be. I should arrive in Arendelle by September the 26th. I'll come straight to see you as soon as I get off that ship. I'm coming back to you, Elsa, just like I promised._

_And remember this... always be true to yourself. Be proud of who you are and what you can do. I never knew Winter could be so beautiful. Your magic is truly amazing, Elsa... you are amazing. Always have the strength to be proud of who you are._

_I'll see you soon, my love._

_Always yours,_

_Anna._

Elsa was crying again. But this time, the tears were of joy, not fear. She read the letter through again and again. Anna was safe. And she was coming home. She would have her back once more.

Eventually, Elsa put the letter back in the envelope and hid it safely under her pillow. Still holding onto the blue pearl, she walked towards her table and opened up her jewellery box. Inside it there was a silver caged necklace which had been empty since she obtained it. Now she had the perfect thing to put inside. She fiddled with the clasp and opened it up, placing the pearl safely into it and closing it again. She fixed the necklace around her neck and hid the caged pearl beneath her clothes. She didn't want anyone to question where she got it from.

Despite the trauma Elsa had endured that night, the gift and letter from Anna had cheered her up immensely. There must have been some higher power at work to ensure she had received this on her birthday because there was no way Anna could have known about it. Whatever it was, Elsa was elated to have received it.

She then remember that downstairs, everyone was throwing a party in her honour. Feeling dismal once more, she made her way back down to the ball room. With the knowledge that Anna would be home soon, and before her wedding to Hans no less, Elsa knew she would be able to get through the rest of the night.

* * *

**WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAT?! betcha didnt see any of that coming? ;D Anyway, I thought I'd grace you with two chapters because I'll be going away this week to visit my parents so I'm not gonna start writing the next chapter until the weekend at the earliest. but heres two chapters to get you through the week. again, i am so so sorry for this chapter. so much angst! but theres a nice little sort of happy ending so its not all bad. i do feel absolutely awful for doing this to elsa though, you have no idea. ive been cringing all night as i wrote this. ugh im so horrible! :((**


	9. Chapter 9

**So I got this finished earlier than planned. And I just want to say that the past week, I have been absolutely overwhelmed with the response i've gotten from this fic. I've had readers tell me that they almost got detention for reading it in class, they've stayed up till 4am on a school night to read it, they've read all 8 chapters in one sitting and even that they may need medical attention cause they dont know what to do with all these feeeeeels! Ahaha wow I love you guys, you really make this story so much more worth writing just to read these bloody reviews. wow you lot are amazing and thank you for being such cool readers!**

**And one more... I sincerely apologise for this next chapter.**

**ENJOY! ;D**

* * *

_September, 1713._

With the Summer season coming to an end, the conditions of the sea were worsening. The clear blue skies had been replaced with clouds, which were getting darker by the day. Rain was becoming more and more frequent and it was proving to be ever difficult to navigate the ship in the strong winds.

Despite the almost constant bad weather though, Anna was always in a bright mood. They would be due to dock back in Arendelle in just over one week's time and the anticipation was killing her. Not to mention, on the journey back home she really had been getting in to the hang of sailing, just like Kristoff said she would. After spending another two months at sea, Anna had learnt all the basics to keeping a ship afloat.

There had even been one evening, when the majority of the crew had retired down below for the night, and Anna had been taking a moonlit walk along the deck. The Captain was standing alone at the helm as he steered the ship across the ocean.

Anna had decided to go and keep him company, as she realised she'd never actually spent time alone with the man nor had a proper conversation with him.

"Good evening, Captain Tanner," she greeted as she walked up the ladder that led to the Quarterdeck.

"Ahh, evening, young Anna," The Captain smiled at her. "And how is the woman of the ship faring tonight?"

"Very well, thankyou, Sir."

"Oh Anna, your politeness never ceases to amaze me," the Captain mentioned, still smiling. "I don't think I have ever had a crew member with such manners before."

"Oh, um..." Anna blushed slightly. "I was raised to always be polite, I guess."

"Your parents taught you well, Anna."

"Parent," she corrected him. "Just one. I don't really remember much of my father. Haven't seen him since I was very young."

"Oh, may I ask what happened?" Captain Tanner said, concern and curiosity in his tone.

"He died... out at sea actually. He used to sail on a merchant vessel and as far as I'm aware, they were attacked by a Spanish fleet."

The Captain looked down at Anna, quite regretting he asked, should it have brought up any upsetting memories for her. She didn't seem phased by it though.  
"So becoming a Privateer... helping to attack the Spanish... was this a revenge mission for you?"

"Oh not at all! I'm not really one to hold a grudge, no Sir! My friend, Kristoff told me he was joining the crew and he thought it'd be a good idea if I joined too! That's all it is, I just wanted to go on a little adventure is all." Anna explained to him. That made more sense to the Captain. From what he'd seen of Anna, she was too kind hearted to hold grudges. Why she had decided to spend all this time on this Godforsaken ship, he'd never understand; but she seemed to be enjoying herself somewhat.

"Anna," the Captain had an idea. "Would you like a go?"

"Wait, what?" Anna asked, momentarily stunned at what the Captain had suggested.

"Would you like a go?" He repeated. "Sailing the ship? I could do with a break and we're sailing by the wind so it won't be difficult. Come on, give it a go." He moved aside and Anna, still shocked at what the Captain was letting her do, moved towards the wheel, hands shaking slightly due to the responsibilty she was being given.

"Now, make sure you have a firm grip on it," the Captain ordered. Anna grabbed onto the wheel so hard her knuckles turned white. "Not so hard!" The Captain chuckled, amused by Anna's seriousness of the situation. "Firm but not hard, Anna... remember that."

"Okay, firm... but not hard." Anna repeated, ever so slightly loosening her grip, a look of pure concentration on her face.

"There we go, you're getting the hang of it, lass."

Anna managed to spend the next couple of hours sailing the ship through the waters without complication. She was doing a pretty good job if she did say so herself. She kept it to herself, but she'd been wanting to have a go at doing this the moment she stepped aboard all those months ago.

She kept conversation with her Captain as they got to know each other. She learnt that both himself and his ship were British, hailing from Plymouth in England. He had been married once, but lost his wife to a terrible fever one winter. He had never fathered any children, having never re-married. This did not bother him however, as his love of sailing outweighed his want for children. He loved to read and had an extensive collection of fiction in his cabin. And, to Anna's great surprise, he was a very good cook. Not quite as good as the current ship's chef, but still, he told Anna about a great many recipes he could prepare. All in all, Captain Patrick Tanner was an extremely lovely man, despite his rough appearance.

As she sailed into the night, Anna heard a voice from high above. The lookout had spotted something.

"There's a fleet on the horizon, Captain! They're coming right for us!" He was shouting as he clambered down the rigging. "They fly the Spanish Colours!"

"How many of 'em, lad?!" Captain Tanner barked at the young man.

"At least four or five, Sir!"

"Very well... get down below and alert the crew! Ready them for battle!"

"Battle?!" Anna asked, bewildered, as she handed the ship back to the captain. "I thought the war was over? The Spanish shouldn't be attacking anyone, should they?"

"Aye lass, they shouldn't. But seeing as we're not flying any colours anymore since we're no longer an official Privateering ship, they may be mistaking us for Pirates." The Captain explained to Anna. "Either that or they just want to attack as many enemy ships as possibe before they head back home. It happens, I'm afraid."

"But can we really take on so many ships at once? There's loads of them, isn't there?" Anna was getting more and more worried by the second.

"We'll be fine, lass. I reckon all but one will be Schooners. They don't take much to sink when they go against a ship as mighty as the _Providence_!" The Captain said proudly.

The crew members were now getting themselves in battle positions as the Spanish fleet got closer. There were six ships in all, and Captain Tanner was right; there were all Schooners. All but one. Right in the centre of the fleet, an almighty Spanish Galleon, more than twice the size of any ship surrounding it, sailed amongst them.

"READY MEN?!" The Captain shouted.

The crew members roared their reply and all too soon, the Spanish ships had reached them.

Two of the Schooners had surrounded them immedietly.

"FIRE THE BROADSIDE CANONS!"

A blast erupted into the night as canons from both sides of the _Providence_ launched round shot at the Schooners. They took the hits hard, being so close to the ex-Privateer ship.

"READY... FIRE AGAIN!"

And with that, two of six ships had already been obliterated by the _Providence_. Explosions on either side rocked the ship and Anna almost lost her balance. She had been on this ship long enough now though to be able to stand some rocking.

As they prepared to fire at the other ships, the Galleon fired chain shot at them. It hit high up in the rigging and severly damaged the foremast, bringing it crashing down. The main mast took some of the hit as well, causing it to splinter slightly. This Galleon was a powerful ship.

"READY THE BOW CHASERS, MEN! WE'RE GONNA AIM FOR THE SCHOONER ON THE STARBOARD SIDE!" Captain Tanner yelled as he steered the ship to the right. Anna could figure out what he was planning. They were going to attack the Schooner head on and then attack the Galleon broadside. The other Schooners weren't much of a problem for the _Providence_, they just needed to do some damage to the Galleon before it was too late.

"READY TO FIRE, CAPTAIN!" The Quartermaster shouted up to Captain Tanner.

"FIRE!" He replied.

The Bow Chasers fired at the Schooner, now in front of them.

"BRACE YOURSELVES! WE'LL RAM THEM!"

The _Providence_ aimed to hit the smaller Spanish ship head on with the prow. The crew held on to anything they could and crouched down, Anna included.

They hit the Schooner with such force that Anna was thrown off her feet and tumbled a few feet behind where she had originally been crouched.

"ANNA! MAN THE SWIVEL GUN! AIM FOR THE DECK ON THE GALLEON!" Captain Tanner shouted to her from the helm.

"AYE CAPTAIN!" Anna got to her feet and headed for the port side swivel gun.

"YOU THERE! CONNOR!" The Captain yelled at a teenage boy just at the foot of the quarter deck ladders. "GET UP HERE AND HELP LOAD THAT GUN!"

The young boy ran towards Anna and prepared himself with the next load of musket shot for the gun. Anna, who had never actually used the swivel gun before, readied herself. She was better with swords than guns, but she was going to do the best she could.

As they destroyed the third Schooner, the _Providence _was brought broadside with the Galleon. They were close enough for Anna's shots to hit.

Captain Tanner carried on barking orders and some of the crew climbed the rigging and aimed to jump across to the rigging of the Galleon, ready to attack the crew in hand to hand combat.

Anna turned the gun towards the bow of the enemy ship, aiming for one of the men on the deck. Instead, she missed him by a good six or seven feet, and hit one of the casks. Fortunately it was a cask which stored gunpowder, and the explosion it caused blew at least three men in the surrounding area to smithereens.

"Nice shot, miss," the boy, Connor, complimented her as he helped load the next round.

"Thanks! I definitely meant to do that!" Anna replied enthusiastically.

Anna sent some more shots towards the Galleon, but soon enough, the enemy crew had boarded the _Providence_. She had to abandon the swivel gun and help defend the ship from the threat that was now upon them.

"You ready, Connor?" she asked, her sword now at the ready.

"Aye, miss. Ready as I'll ever be!" He replied, unsheathing his own sword.

The two fought side by side as they defended their ship from the Spanish. Anna had really got into the hang of fighting now... real fighting and not just training with Kristoff. She was getting really good at this. Of course, she didn't exactly like it, having to defend herself like this and in turn, attack the enemy. But it didn't have the same affect on her as it had done when she first started working aboard the _Providence_. She still had nightmares every now and then, but she learnt to live with them.

Between them, Anna and Connor managed to take out five Spanish Officers. Anna took a second to throw a glance over to the Captain and everything she saw in the next moments seemed to happen in slow motion.

Captain Tanner was duelling with a Spanish Officer. One of the Swivel Gun operators on the Galleon shot at the Quarter Deck of the _Providence_. It hit a cask of gunpowder stored at the other side of the deck to where Anna was situated. The side where the Captain was. The explosion it caused was tremendous. Anna witnessed both the Captain and the Spanish Officer completely blown up.

Captain Patrick Tanner had been killed.

And that's when the explosion reached Anna. She was far away enough for it not to kill her but the force threw her back and she landed hard against the side of the ship, knocking her head on the gunwale. She lost consciousness instantly.

* * *

Ever since the engagement announcement, Lady Kristiansen had not managed to keep herself quiet about how excited she was about it. It was growing quite tiresome for Elsa to listen to. She was also very involved in the planning of the entire event. She had chosen the flowers, the colour scheme, Elsa's hairstyle and even made the final decision on Elsa's dress. Elsa had expressed no desire in picking anything she wanted for her own wedding, but her mother guessed it was just nerves. This was the biggest day of Elsa's life so far after all.

One afternoon in mid September, Elsa was having tea with her mother in the Manor's tea room as they tried various cake samples together. Her mother really was helping to plan this down to the final detail. Elsa honestly could not care less what type of cake was made for the day. She just needed this afternoon to be over in order to get herself away from her mother and her incessent rambling about the wedding and Hans.

Elsa shuddered every time he was mentioned... and it always went unnoticed.

"Now Elsa, as soon as the two of you have married, I want some grandchildren as soon as possible, okay?" Her mother told her. "No dilly-dallying with that now." She took a sip of her tea as Elsa's face turned a furious shade of red. This was the absolute _last _thing she wanted to talk about.

"_Mother, please!" _Elsa murmered in order to get the older woman to stop.

"Oh Elsa! Do not get embarrassed in front of your mother of all people. It is only how marriage works: you find yourself a handsome young man and make lots and lots of beautiful grandchildren for me. I want plenty before I get too old to play with them." Her mother explained to her.

Elsa's face had, if possible, turned an ever darker shade of red. There was nothing that could stop her mother once she started talking about her daughter's future with Hans.

"Mother," Elsa started. "There is something I simply must tell you... it's about... Hans."

"Oh? What is it?" Curiosity filled her mother's voice.

"He's not..." Elsa took a deep breath before continuing. "He's not exactly... well... h-he is not...what he s-seems..." Elsa's hands were shaking as she held on to her teacup.

"Oh I know," her mother replied. Elsa looked up, not prepared for that response. Her mother didn't look too serious though, considering what her daughter had just confessed. "He's just so much more, isn't he?!"

Her mother sighed... she _actually sighed_ thinking about Hans.

"And he is... dare I say it... ever so _Hans-some_!" Her mother giggled. Elsa started to feel sick, both embarrassed and repulsed at how her mother was acting thinking about the evil young man.

Elsa had to put her teacup down as the hot liquid inside had now turned to cold slush. How could she ever truly explain to her mother what Hans was like, what he had said to her, when she was acting like a lovestruck young woman. She couldn't believe what was happening. What had she done to deserve being in this situation? Everything just seemed so hopeless. Her mother would not listen to a word she was saying, too caught up in the excitement of the wedding. The day of the wedding itself was drawing ever closer. And the worst thing... Anna still had not returned. Anna had stated in her letter when she was due home, and that wasn't for another week yet. But Elsa couldn't help but feel like something was wrong. Despite the letter telling her she would be home soon, Elsa just _knew_ something had happened. She could do nothing about it though, but wait another week for Anna's return.

"Mother," the young blonde woman addressed the older woman sat next to her, who still seemed to be daydreaming about her daughter's fiance. "I do not like Hans," she managed to say as courage temporarily took her over.

"Oh but why? He's such a lovely gentleman," her mother tried to reason. "With those bright green eyes and that gorgeous hair and smile... and... those buttocks..."

Elsa's eyes widened and that last remark.

"Mother!"

"Oh I am sorry, dear... he is just... how could you not like him? He is a fine young man and a perfect match for you, I think."

Elsa's tone quietened again as she spoke.  
"Why don't you marry him then, if you like him so much?"

Her mother appeared to actually consider this for a moment before replying hastily.  
"Oh Heavens... no, I shouldn't... oh my..." She was blushing now and giggling quietly to herself.

Elsa had officially had enough. She couldn't stand this conversation any longer. She stood from her chair.  
"Mother, may I be excused?" And she turned and left the tea room without waiting for an answer, leaving her mother to sit alone, her face still pink at thought of Hans.

As Elsa finally reached her bed chamber, she closed the door promptly behind her and collapsed on the queen sized bed. She reached for the envelope she kept under her pillow and read the letter that was enclosed within it, as she had done on countless occasions since she had received it. This letter was the only thing she had that made any sense in her life. Everything else just seemed so hectic and complicated and this letter was all she had that gave her any sense of hope.

As she held the piece of parchment in her right hand, she reached for the blue pearl she kept hidden underneath her clothes with her left. She fiddled around with it absent mindedly as she read the letter over and over.

Anna would be home soon. She had promised. Elsa could not think otherwise. She could not let the negative thoughts take control of her mind and convince herself something was wrong. No, Anna would be fine and she would soon return. And then... well, Elsa did not quite know what would happen. But so long as Anna was there with her, they would figure it out together.

* * *

**OH SHIT! More angst ughhh! Don't worry, I promise you all some fluff very very veryyyy soon! I cant say when because spoilers but it is legit right around the corner. And maybe some smut as well? ;D ah we will see ;) aha thank you all for reading and please don't hesitate to review! I absolutely love reading what you all think! Thank you so much again and I'll probably have the next chapter uploaded within a week :)**


	10. Chapter 10

**Quick A/N: first of all, to anyone who does speak Spanish, I tried my best in this chapter. All I could do was google certain phrases and just hope they were correct. If anyone speaks the language and understands it, please do tell me if it's okay. There is just a small part in this where Anna speaks to a Spanish man. To anyone who doesn't speak Spanish, please DO NOT GOOGLE THESE PHRASES! ONE OF THEM IS VERY VERY RUDE! That is all.**

* * *

Anna awoke to a tremendous pounding in her head. It was not unlike the times she had woken up the morning after a night of heavy drinking with Kristoff, only much worse. Her hand reached up to the main source of the pain, just on the hairline on the left side of her head. She felt something of a dry and slightly sticky texture and as she pulled her hand away, she noticed tiny red flecks on her fingertips. It was blood. blood that had been there for some time as it had now dried and stuck to her forehead and side of her face where it had previously trickled down.

"Miss Anna?" She heard a young man's voice call out to her softly. "Miss Anna, how are you feeling?" As she focused on the voice she realised it was Connor. She looked to her right side and saw him knelt down beside her, concern written all over his face.

"What happened?" She asked, her voice faint.

"We've been captured, Miss, by the Spanish." Connor explained as he checked her head wound. "There was an explosion on the quarterdeck and you were knocked out."

After a few moments, everything started to come into focus for Anna as she looked around. The few crew that had survived, eight in all including herself, were now residing in two small cells in what she could only assume was the Spanish Galleon.

As well as herself and Connor, there was Kristoff, Abraham, Hamilton, and three other crew members whose names she did not know. She recognised one of them though, as the man who had originally warned them about the Spanish from up in the rigging.

Abraham, from the other cell, continued on with Connor's brief explanation. "We were left with no choice but to surrender. They slaughtered almost the entire crew. We should have just fled when we had the chance. We could have outrun this Galleon easy but the Captain... God rest his soul... he has always been too proud to run from a battle." His eyes were filled with sorrow as he remembered their Captain. Abe, Anna knew, had sailed with Captain Tanner for many years now. He was a loyal crew member and a good friend. Losing their Captain would be the hardest on him.

"How long have I been out?" Anna asked outloud to anyone who would answer her.

"A couple of hours." It was Kristoff's voice she heard. He was in the other cell with Abe. "Don't worry us again like that okay, Anna?" Anna, who was still having trouble with focusing on everyone, looked in his general direction. He was leaning forwards against the bars that seperated their cells, his face full of worry.

She smiled weakly at him and managed a small,  
"Sorry."

Kristoff, despite his concern, smiled back at her.

Anna took a moment to take in her surroundings; the cells they were in were limited in space, with four people residing in each one. The walls were covered in grime and the entire hold was dimly lit and the entrance was guarded by a single Spanish officer. She was convinced, considering the scurrying noises she heard every now and then, that there were rats down here with them.

Anna sniffed and looked around, trying to find the source of a particularly vile smell.

"Hey guys... what exactly is that godawful...?" She spotted a bucket placed in the corner of the cell... "Ew nevermind!" Her face screwed up in disgust. "Couldn't any of you just hold it?!"

The guys all just looked at her apologetically and shrugged their shoulders.

"Oh my Lord I need to get out of here. What's even going to happen to us? Has anyone said anything to any of you?" Anna questioned, desperate to know their situation.

"We've only had a brief explanation," Kristoff informed. "They said we're being taken to Spain. They'll be given coin for us... they think we're pirates. There'll be a hanging waiting for us as soon as we dock."

"A... hanging? But... we're not pirates!" Anna pleaded.

"We told 'em that, Miss." Connor said, looking sorrowful. "They wouldn't listen. I don't really think they care if we're pirates or not to be honest. As long as they get paid for taking us in."

Anna sighed as she thought about their current situation. "We need to get out of here," she mumbled, more to herself than anyone.

"Oh _really_?" came a sarcastic voice from the other cell. It was Hamilton. He had kept himself quiet in the shadows until now. "Like we hadn't already thought of that!" he spat out. The look he sent Anna's way was murderous. "I'm going to get hanged for fucking piracy and I've done nothing wrong! And all you can do is sit there and state the obvious?! This is all your fault!"

"Hamilton!" Abraham shouted at him. "Shut yer mouth! How on earth do you think this could be Anna's fault, you idiot?!"

"She's a stupid little girl! I told you from the moment she decided to come aboard not to let her on that goddamn ship! She has brought all this bad luck down upon us! You all know, as sailors, that it is bad luck to have a woman on board!" he had brought himself into the centre of his cell now, directing his rage at Anna. "It's your fault they decided to attack us! It's your fault we were captured! It's your fault we're all sentenced to a hanging! And it's your fault the Captain is dead!"

The next moment, Hamilton was on the floor, blood covering his face. Kristoff was standing over him, his fist still raised. Blood covered his own knuckles.

"If you _ever_ speak to her like that again," Kristoff threatened, his voice dangerously low, "I will not stop hitting you until you've drawn your last breath. I'll save them the job of killing you and I'll do it myself."

All anyone could do was look at Kristoff, completely stunned. Anna had no idea he had that sort of rage in him. But Kristoff, being as protective of her as he was, would literally kill for Anna. He would do anything to keep her safe. And she appreciated that more than he could imagine.

* * *

For two days the remainder of the _Providence_'s crew had sat in the poor conditions of the cells awaiting their imminent arrival in Spain. The ride in the Galleon's hold was becoming more and more uneven. There was a storm brewing outside and everyone could feel it.

Every now and then, an officer would come and relieve the previous one on guard duty. They would share a few words, in Spanish of course so Anna had absolutely no idea what they were saying.

On one of these occasions, Connor broke the silence as a new guard started his shift.

"They've got more ships," he whispered. Anna had been daydreaming so it took her a while to realise what he had said. She'd been too busy thinking about a certain blonde woman in order to try and relieve the overwhelming misery as she sailed to her own death.

"Wait... what?" she perked up as she realised he'd spoken.

"I've just heared those two Spanish blokes talking about it."

"You... you can speak Spanish?" Anna asked, bewildered. Connor had everyone's attention now as he continued.

"Yeah, can't you? Oh nevermind! Anyway, listen to this... The fleet, they've joined another small fleet and now there's a total of six ships again. Two Schooners and a Frigate I think they said?"

"And how is this information going to help us?" Hamilton asked in a snide tone.

"Oh I was..." Connor mumbled, unsure of himself now. "I was just saying, I guess."

"Oh be quiet, Ham." Abraham told him. "I don't want to have to spend my last days listening to your snide remarks about everything." He then turned his attention back to Connor. "Go on lad, have they said anything else?"

"We're only a few of days away now. And the Frigate has got some prisoners as well. Pirates apparently but knowing these lot, they're probably as innocent as us."

"These guys are despicable," Kristoff mumbled.

* * *

Another day had passed on the Spanish Galleon and Anna was going mad. All anyone could do was sit around and mope. Hamilton spent most of his time sat in the corner of his cell muttering to himself, insults and snarky comments no doubt. And Connor had spent the good part of the last 24 hours singing to himself, a traditional sea shantie from his home town. As the hours passed, he'd gotten louder.

"_From Liverpool to 'Frisco a-rovin' I went,_

_For to stay in that country was my good intent._

_But drinkin' strong whiskey like other damn fools,_

_Oh, I soon got transported back to Liverpool, singin'._

_Roll, roll, roll bullies, roll!_

_Them Liverpool judies have got us in tow."_

"Oh Gods, I can't take this anymore!" Anna stood from where she had been sat on the ground. "I need to get out of here, I'd rather throw myself overboard than be stuck in this cell a second longer!"

One of the crew members in her cell looked up at her. He was the man from up in the rigging and Anna had learned his name was Johnny.

"Anna, it's no use," He said to her. "We're locked in here without escape and we face the gallows in a few days. This time next week, no doubt we'll all be dead."

"Now why would you go and say something like that?! Honestly, Johnny, you're such a mood killer," Anna replied, rolling her eyes. "No... I haven't lost hope yet. Something's got to happen. We _have _to survive this! We just need to figure out how to get out somehow!" Determination lit up Anna's eyes.

"Anna," Abraham piped up, "How are we even gonna get outta these 'ere cells? There's no way."

"Well... there is _one _way."

Everyone looked towards who spoke.

It was Kristoff.

"What? You know how to get us out of here?" Anna asked. "Why didn't you say something _sooner_?!"

"Because even if it works, what are we going to do once we leave the hold? There's dozens of Spanish Officers on this ship."

Anna thought it over for a while. She had an idea. It was a bit of a stretch and it risked everyone's lives. But they were all sentenced to death anyway so it was worth a shot. And it might just work.

Anna told her cellmates of her plan and they were all on board. Even Hamilton agreed to it, though it was reluctantly.

"Alright, Kristoff," Anna said as finished plotting out the finer details of their escape plan. "Firstly, how are we gonna get out of these cells. They're locked and there's the guard over by the door. He's the only one with the keys. That's a bit of a problem."

"Well, Anna, _you're_ a girl." Kristoff simply stated.

Anna was confused.  
"Oh well spotted."

Kristoff raised his eyebrows expectantly, hoping she'd catch on. Anna didn't. She looked around at everyone else, who were now wearing the same expression as Kristoff.

"What?" she asked, dumbfounded. "_What_?!" And then it hit her. "Oh... no... no way. I am _not_ going to... ew!"

"Oh come on, Anna!" Connor pleaded. "You're our only chance!"

"No, it's gross!"

"Annnnnnnaaaaaaaaa _pleeeaassee!_" Kristoff was using the big brown puppy dog eyes on her now.

"Ugh _fine_! If only to stop you from making that face at me. But... how am I supposed... I don't know how?"

"Just use your seductive ways and womanly prowess!" Kristoff explained. "It won't be hard. You're pretty and you're charming. And he's a _guy_! He'll fall for it."

"But... I don't know what I'm supposed to _say_! I can't speak a word of Spanish."

"Well, I can help you there," Connor smirked. "Don't worry, Anna. I can help you woo him."

Anna sighed. There was no other way to do it. She was going to have to woo this Spanish guard in order to get his keys.

"Okay let's get this over with," She grumbled.

She made her way right to the front of the cell and leaned against the bars as she held on to them. Connor was stood behind her, near enough for her to hear the things he whispered but with enough space so the guard wouldn't notice.

"Hey, you!" she shouted at the Spanish Officer. He looked over his shoulder in her direction.

"_Not like that_!" Connor hissed from behind her. "How do you expect to seduce him when you speak to him like that? Be gentle... seductive. And _Spanish_! Try this: Hola Señor, ven aquí."

Anna focused on the guard again who had turned around completely now, his face aggravated.

"Hola Señor... ven aquí..." she repeated nervously, unsure about this whole idea.

Surprised, the Spanish Officer walked over to her, but not too close to the cell for him to be in arm's reach.

"¿Qué quieres?" He asked, his face and voice stern. This was going to be harder than she thought.

From behind her, Connor whispered something and Anna quickly repeated it.  
"He estado pensando en ti." She had no idea what she was saying and she hoped to God the guard would fall for it.

The Spanish man's expression suddenly changed, and he raised an eyebrow slightly at her.

Anna once again followed Connor's instructions. "Sí... Me gustas... te deseo."

"Ah sí?" The guard replied, taking another step towards the cell.

"Tu eres muy guapo," Anna told him, still copying everything Connor whispered, trying her best to make it sound as accurate as possible. She must have been doing a good enough job because he seemed to be falling for it. The look in his eyes turned predatory but Anna tried not to let it deter her as she carried on. Whatever she was saying, it was certainly seducing him.

The guard was now right up to the cell, his face against the bars. Anna could smell the foulness of his breath. She could do nothing but ignore it as she powered through the traumatic ordeal. She put her hands either side of the guard's face, as if to caress it. Connor whispered one more phrase to her. Anna had no idea of the almighty smirk on his face as she said it gently to the guard. "Estoy tan mojada, te necesito ahora."

The guard growled... he actually growled at what she had said. He leaned down to kiss her and before he got the chance, she grabbed his face firmly and pulled his head down hard, hitting it against the bars of the cell. She let go of him and he dropped to the floor at her feet, out cold.

Connor burst out laughing as Anna bent down to reach for the keys from upon the guard's person.

She stood and looked at the teenage boy, trying to give him a stern glare but only succeeding in making him laugh even harder.

"_What_?! What did I say?!" She asked.

"Nothing, Miss. It's not something I should really be translating to you." He replied, still sniggering. "All that matters is that it worked."

Anna rolled her eyes at her young friend and fiddled with the keys, finding the correct one for their cell. She opened the door and stepped over the unconcious guard, turning to her right and unlocking the other cell.

As Kristoff stepped out, he gave Anna a massive hug and thanked her, before making his way to the guard on the floor. He stepped on his already bleeding face for good measure and threw his body in the cell. Anna locked the door back up and she lead the crew as they swiftly made their way to the entrance of the hold.

"Okay," she whispered as she looked back at them. "Everyone know what they're doing?" The seven men all nodded at her, determination on their faces. "If this goes wrong and we all get killed, well at least we tried, right? It's better than facing the gallows."

And with that, they made their escape.

As they walked into the next room of the ship, they found all their possessions being kept on a table out of the way. The crew reclaimed their swords and guns and made their way to the next part of the ship, now thoroughly armed.

As they got to a set of stairs, Anna motioned for them to wait in the shadows around the corners either side of the foot of the stairs.

There was another Spanish Officer stood right at the top, his back to them.

Anna had planned for this. She looked at Kristoff on the other side of the stairs and he confirmed he was ready. Anna whistled.

The Officer, alerted by the sound, turned around and made his way down to investigate. He got to the bottom step and turned to see Anna but before he could make a sound to raise the alarm, Kristoff came from behind him and silently broke his neck in one swift movement.

Anna led them up the stairs as they attempted to reach the main deck of the Galleon. The ship rocked violently. The storm outside must have been getting worse. Anna figured that must be have been why there was very little security below deck; everyone would have been up above working hard to keep the ship in good working order with the bad weather.

As they got higher, they could here the Galleon's crew. It was hectic up above, everyone could tell. Many footsteps were running about frantically as orders were barked at everyone. Not to mention the noises from the thunder. It was still far enough away for the lightning to not be an immediate threat to the ship, but the _Providence_'s crew could still hear it clearly above everything else.

"Right guys," Anna whispered. "We'll have to go in small groups. If we all go at once they'll noticed straight away. Now, remember your positions... straight for the rigging... Kristoff and Johnny, you go first and get right to the top... you know what to do." The two men nodded at her.

"Connor, Abe and myself will go next. You two prepared for this?" Anna asked her companions and they too nodded in confirmation.

"Okay, and you three," she turned towards Hamilton and the two other members of the crew, William and Phillip. "You can bring up the rear. Once we're all in position and ready, you guys come on over. Until then, back us up if we're spotted, alright?" William and Phillip nodded afirmitave but Hamilton sneered.  
"So, we're essentially just going to risk our lives while we wait until you're all safe. We'll probably be spotted and killed before any of you get anywhere."

Anna had no time for this. She pulled her knife out of its sheath and pointed it straight at Hamilton's throat.  
"You can either die out there or die right here, Hamilton. It's your choice," she threatened him. Hamilton stared her straight in the eye, trying not to let his fear show.  
"Let's just get this over with," he said, voice low and steady.

Anna put her knife away and readied herself.  
"Okay guys, let's go."

Kristoff went first with Johnny right behind him. As predicted, the Frigate was situated right next to the ship they were on. The two stealthily ran up to the main deck and climbed the port side rigging of the Galleon. Anna watched from the shadows below as they climbed higher and higher, remaining undetected. she remained in place for a few seconds before motioning for Abraham and Connor to follow her, and the three of them went next. They ran to the main deck, avoiding the mass of Spanish officers who were still running around trying to secure the ship, too frantic to notice the escaped prisoners.

The three of them clambered up the rigging, following Kristoff and Johnny's path. They met the two of them in the lookout spot up above everything. It was cramped up there with five of them taking up the space now. Not to mention the recently deceased Spanish lookout that the two men had taken care of before Anna had reached the top.

"The other three will be making their way up soon so we've got to move," Anna commanded. Johnny, being the most experieced on this part of the ship, did his bit first. He stepped off the look out point and walked steadily along the yard of the main mast. It looked to Anna like it was going to be more difficult than she thought, considering the weather. The wind and rain was lashing down on them now and even the huge Galleon was being blown unsteadily from side to side.

As Johnny reached the end of the yard, Anna went next. She was right, this was hard. If she slipped and lost her balance, the fall would undoubtedly kill her. She watched as Johnny jumped. With an almighty leap, he threw himself from the Galleon and aimed for the rigging of the Frigate nearby. It was just close enough for him to land.

With a deep breath, Anna kept on going. The rain had caused the yard to become slippery and her feet were threatening to lose their grip on the thin wood.

She was nearly to end when it happened. There was a huge gust of wind and Anna's feet were blown from underneath her. She completely lost her balance and fell from the yard.

"ANNA!" Kristoff shouted from behind where she had previously been stood.

Anna had managed to grip the yard with her hands before falling to the deck below, and she was now hanging for dear life on the wooden pole.

"I'm fine!" she shouted, rather sheepishly. Trust her to be the first one to fall.

Kristoff put his palm to his forehead before yelling back to her,  
"Goddamit, Anna, you useless lesbian! Get yourself back up quick, before you end up falling _again_!"

Anna managed to pull herself up and back on to the thin yard, but not before grumbling incoherently at her best friend. Before long, she managed to get to the end of the yard and did as Johnny had before her, leaping into the rigging on the Frigate.

Kristoff followed next. As Connor made his way along the yard, Anna saw that Hamilton, William and Phillip had now joined Abraham up in the Galleon's Crow's Nest. Once Connor had made it across and Abraham started, Kristoff and Johnny again climbed up to the top of the rigging to take care of whoever was on lookout. When Abraham had made it to the Frigate, the three of them made their way to the top of the main mast once again. As soon as they were there, the Frigate's lookout had already silently been killed by Johnny and Kristoff.

While the last three men were making their way over from the Galleon, Anna motioned for Connor and Abe to follow her lead. She leapt from the main mast towards the mizzenmast near the stern end of the ship. They were going to take out the crew on the quarterdeck. Kristoff and Johnny would wait for Hamilton, William and Phillip, and the five of them would take out as many of the crew as they could on the main deck. It was only a Frigate so the crew wouldn't pose as much of a problem for them all as the Galleon's would have done. Anna needed to take control of the quarterdeck first, though.

As she peered down from atop the mizzenmast, she noticed three crew members down there, one of which was undoubtedly the captain.

"Three of them... perfect." Anna muttered to her two companions. "Abe, you take down the Helmsman. Connor, I want you to go for the quartermaster over there. As for me, I'm killing the Captain."

"Yes Miss!" Both Connor and Abraham agreed firmly together. the three of them unsheathed their swords and jumped.

Abraham, as skilled and experienced as he was, leapt right onto his target and sliced his throat instantly. The quartermaster was farther back from the other two, so Connor had to land on the quarterdeck and run towards him, the two then engaging in combat.

Anna landed right upon the captain, who had been standing near the helm. Before she had a chance to do anything however, he pushed her towards the port side of the ship. In doing so, she lost grip of her sword and was left defenceless as it slid across the surface of the quarterdeck. Connor was still fighting against the quartermaster and Abraham had now run down onto the main deck to assist the rest of the crew, who were now down there fighting with the Spanish Officers of the Frigate.

Anna was left to deal with the Captain alone. A Captain which she had underestimated as he now loomed over her. The only thing that saved Anna was her quick thinking. She jumped to her feet and kicked a foot hard into the Captain's stomach. It not only winded him, but pushed him back a good couple of feet until he lost his balance and fell.

He had landed at the starboard side of the helm, his head right underneath the wheel, one of the handles just above his throat. Anna's instinct kicked in and before the Captain could even realise what was happening, Anna took hold of the wheel and pulled it down hard to starboard. An almighty roar of thunder sounded the exact moment the Captain's neck snapped under the weight of the wheel.

"Wow, Miss Anna! That was so _cool_!" Connor had approached her now, having taken care of the quartermaster. The teenager removed the Captain's body from the helm so Anna could take control of the ship.

"Connor, go find Kristoff and send him up here, if you will?"

"Yes Miss!" And with that, he ran down to the main deck into the midst of the fighting.

Moments later, Kristoff was at her side.

"Anna! You killed the Captain?" He asked as he noticed the body at their feet. "So what's the plan now? We could try and outrun the fleet but the Galleon would probably take care of us before we got far away enough."

"I've got a plan," Anna assured him, looking to her left. In the distance, the heart of the storm was nearby. The clouds were black, the rain was harsh, the thunder was deafening, and lighting was cracking down into the sea frequently. The waves were far too monstrous for any sane sailor to steer their ship into that direction. Kristoff realised, with horror, what his best friend was planning to do.

"Anna no!" He pleaded.

"Anna YES!" She yelled as she steered the ship hard to port and they made their way out of the fleet.

Before anyone on the Galleon had realised what had happened, the Frigate was entering the storm.

The rain became suddenly heavier and lashed down upon them ever harder. Anna had never had much experience steering a ship, having only done the one time on a calm evening. This was much different. She could not let it deter her though, as she did all she could to save the remainder of the _Providence_'s crew.

"Anna, you are being absolutely crazy!" Kristoff shouted at the top of his voice, in order to have himself heard over the noise of the storm.

"We either sail through this storm or we go back to the Spanish, Kristoff! Which would you rather do?!" Anna replied loudly as she navigated her way through the biggest waves she had ever experienced.

Ahead of the ship, a funnel shaped vortex was coming straight for them.

"MISS ANNA!" She heard Connor shout from the main deck below. "WATERSPOUT! STEER WIDE!"

"I SEE IT, CONNOR!"

And before it got too close, she steered the ship hard to starboard. The force of the turn actually knocked Kristoff off his feet and the only thing that kept Anna stood upright was her grip on the wheel. The water spout narrowly missed them, but as it passed by, the ship was pulled harshly to port side by the force of the vortex. They steadied out somewhat once it was out of reach.

Anna steered the ship for another half hour through the vigorous storm. They narrowly missed another waterspout and she was constantly trying to dodge the lightning as it seemed to aim itself for their ship. On one occasion it missed them by mere inches. Kristoff had to stay by Anna's side and help her turn the wheel often, the waves being so strong it needed two to navigate it in the direction they needed to go.

Eventually, the clouds started to lighten and the sounds of thunder had become distant rumbles as opposed to roars. The rain was still heavy, but with the wind weakening, it wasn't quite a threat now as it had been not long before.

As the waves eased up and became easier to sail across, Anna let out a sigh of relief. She let go of her grip on the wheel and turned around, sliding to the ground with her back against it. Her legs just didn't have the strength to hold her up for the moment after everything she'd just been through.

She turned her gaze to the sky. The sun had started to rise in the east, creating a bright orange hue to shine upon the ship. Towards the west, the storm was still brewing, but it was so far in the distance now it posed no threat whatsoever. Anna watched the lightning crash into the ocean from the black clouds and listened to the distant thunder. She had no idea how she'd managed it, but she had sailed them through a storm and to safety. They were safe.

Kristoff walked in front of her, holding out his hand to help her up. She looked up at him, raindrops falling on her face, although much softer now. Anna took her best friend's hand and once again got to her feet.

"Jesus, Anna..." He started, voice full of bewilderment. "You... you did it... you actually did it! We actually survived!"

From below on the main deck, Anna heard a roar of cheers from the men who had helped her. She couldn't help the huge, yet tired grin from spreading across her face.

She walked over lazily to the edge of the ship and looked down at the broadside, Kristoff right behind her.

"By God, she took some knocks, didn't she?" Kristoff mentioned as he looked at the damage of the ship. The storm had caused some damage to the structure but all in all, it was still able to sail well.

"I think we should keep her," Anna said, still smiling.

"What?" Kristoff asked.

"Yeah. Let's keep her... for good. You should even be Captain. You'd make a great one." She replied, turning back towards Kristoff.

Kristoff raised his eyebrows at what Anna had actually just said. _He_ would never be capable enough to be the Captain of a ship.

"No no no no no... I could definitely _not_ be Captain. _I _wasn't the one who busted us all out of the cells. It wasn't _me_ who made the plan to escape the Galleon and take control of this ship. And I _certainly_ didn't sail the ship through a storm and survive, saving all of ours lives! Anna, if anyone should be Captain, it needs to be you!"

Before Anna could even respond, Connor made a statement.

"Kristoff's right, Miss Anna. You're the one with the capability of Captaining this crew. You should do it!"

Anna was rendered speechless.

"And the rest of the crew agree, don't you guys?!" Kristoff shouted down to the gathering of men on the main deck, looking up at the three of them.

Again, they cheered, all willing to sail under Anna seeing as she had saved everyone's lives and commandeered a ship for them all.

Well, everyone except Hamilton.

"Have you all gone mad?!" He shouted in disgust. "We cannot sail under the authority of a _girl_! I, for one, will not stand for it! It's too vile to even think about."

Without warning, Kristoff pulled his Flintlock pistol out and pointed it straight at Hamilton's head.

"I'm sorry, what were you saying?" He asked calmly. "You either sail with us, with Anna as your Captain, or I shoot you. You choose."

The look of pure venom in Hamilton's eyes was overwhelming, but with a pistol pointing at him, he dared not say another word.

"That's what I thought," Kristoff spoke as he lowered his Flintlock. "So, Anna..." He turned back towards his best friend. "What do you say? Be our Captain?"

Anna, still quite speechless, managed to mumble out a quiet reply.

"Ummm... well I... I suppose I could... I could try." She ran a hand through her damp hair, embarrassed from all the praise. "Only if you'll be my Quartermaster, though. I can't do this without you, Kristoff."

Kristoff beamed down at her, thoroughly thrilled at her offer.  
"It would be an honour... Captain."

Anna let out a laugh, still unsure how this had all happened.

"So what're our first orders, Miss A- ... I mean, Captain Anna?" Connor asked, smiling at her.

Anna thought it through.

"Release the prisoners in the hold. They will become part of our crew or they will stay prisoners, it's up to them. Johnny and Abraham, you see to those will you?" The two men nodded and went down below. "The bodies need clearing," Anna continued. "Hamilton and Phillip... throw them all overboard." The two got to it, Hamilton muttering complaints to himself the entire time, obviously not too happy at being given such a chore.

"As for you two," She turned to the men on the quarterdeck with her. "Kristoff, as quartermaster, you're in charge of supplies. That means ammo, food, water, money, anything. Go through the entire ship and make a list of what you find. I need to know what rations we have. Connor, you can lend him a hand."

"Aye Captain!" Connor replied excitedly, using any excuse he could to call her that now. The two of them left the quarterdeck and worked on finding all the supplies.

"William!" Anna shouted down to the last remaining crew member on the main deck.

"Yes, Captain?!"

"On the _Providence_, you were the navigator, were you not?"

"Indeed I was, Captain!"

"Then the two of us will make our way down to the Captain's quarters and we will navigate a route out of here." Anna instructed him as she made her way down the quarterdeck ladders.

"Yes, of course, Captain," the young man replied. "What's our heading?"

Anna smiled, to herself more than anything.

"Arendelle."

* * *

**HELLO MY LOVELIES! This is the longest chapter so far, so forgive me for taking so many days to write it! I've actually had a really busy week and all in all I got this out in about 3 days which isn't bad ;D There was going to be a lot more to this chapter, but considering how long it is, I will be uploading another small chapter tomorrow! There will be lots of Elsa! And, considering how long you've all waited for this... I will give you a quick spoiler. SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER! Anna does arrive in Arendelle in the next one! :D:D:D:D:D  
So much has happened in this chapter so far though, it just had to be by itself. Elsa's bit will come tomorrow in a very quick one. Hope you all enjoyed this! Anna is a full on legit pirate captain now wahey! Thank you all so much for reading this and as always I absolutely would love to read some reviews. I honestly have the greatest readers in the world and I love hearing what you all have to say about it! Your reviews honestly crack me up, you crazy lot! Thanks again, Much love to you all! I will return tomorrow with the next update! :)**


	11. Chapter 11

**Told you I'd be back with another chapter today! Also, this story hit 10,000 views today! THAT IS SO MENTAL! Thank you all sosososososo much for reading it and such. Ahhh you're all so awesome! ENJOY!**

* * *

_October 1713_

Elsa let out a deep breath as she finally knocked on the door. She had been stood alone in the hallway outside her father's study for at least ten minutes, trying to gather the courage to speak to him. She was due to marry Hans in five days time and Anna still hadn't returned. She was little over a week late now and Elsa was spending every waking moment worrying about her. With Anna nowhere to be seen and to help her figure a way out of this marriage, Elsa was going to have to take matters into her own hands. There was no way in Hell she was going to let herself be married to that man.

A few moments after knocking, Elsa heard her father speak.  
"Enter."

She opened the door a little apprehensively and walked into the room. Her father was sat at his desk looking over papers. "Elsa?" he asked, surprised to see her as he looked up at her. Not once had she ever voluntarily approached his study, the only times she came here being when her father had demanded it.

"What is it? Is there anything I can help you with?" Even when it was his own daughter seeing him, he was still as polite and formal as ever.

Elsa shut the door behind her and walked towards his desk slowly, her hands wringing together with nerves, gaze turned to the floor. "Please, take a seat." Her father gestured to the chair in front of his desk. "Tell me what it is that's on your mind."

Elsa sat down, shaking slightly as she tried to think of how to get out what she needed to tell him. She took another deep breath and started.

"I need to talk to you... about... the wedding..." She started, her voice trembling as she spoke.

"Oh?" Her father raised an eyebrow. "I thought you talked to your mother about the wedding. She is planning the entire thing, is she not?"

"Yes, father... she is. But... I n-need to talk to y-you about... well not s-so much the wedding... more about... _him_..." Elsa managed to say, still unable to look at her father in front of her.

"_Him_? Don't you mean Hans?" Her father questioned. "He is to be your husband after all, Elsa. You should be able to speak about him by his name. It would be rude to do otherwise."

"I know, father... I know." Her voice was little more than a whisper now, fear almost taking over.

"Then what is the problem, Elsa?"

"_I can't marry that man._" She spoke quietly.

"Elsa!"

"_Please_ listen to me, father!" Elsa pleaded.

"No, Elsa! _You_ listen to _me_! You _are_ going to marry Hans! I do not want to hear any more of this nonsense now! The wedding is just days away and you will go through with it!" His voice was raised now, and his patience was running short.

"But I don't love him!" Elsa almost shouted, her desperation showing.

Her father opened his mouth the retaliate, but shut it again and sighed, relaxing his posture slightly in his chair.

"I've seen love, father." Elsa continued, her voice soft once more. "I know that when you're in love you can't stop smiling. The happiness that one person can make you feel is just so... _overwhelming_. It gives you these fluttery _feelings _in your stomach and it makes your head spin but in a good way and it makes you heart _soar_!" She didn't realise she was rambling as she thought of the woman who made her feel like this. "Love makes you ache when you're away from that person and you always long for them and..."

Her father cleared his throat.  
"You seem to know a lot about love, Elsa."

"Wait, what?!" Elsa muttered. "Oh... I... um..." A blush arose on her cheeks. "I have... um... I've read about it... yes... in books... and I've seen it... people that is... outside... holding hands... and being... in love. And you and mother! You two are in love! Why do I have to marry someone I do not love? It isn't fair, father."

Her father was looking intently at Elsa, waiting for her to finish her little speech. And once she was silent, he explained something to her.

"I know you do not want to marry a man you do not love, Elsa. Believe me, I know. When one is part of a family as high up as we are, marriage is more about convenience and less about love. Do you think I married your mother because I loved her? No, we barely knew each other when we married. I had only met her one time before our wedding day but as time went on, I grew to love her as she did with me. And the same will happen with you and Hans. In time, you will both grow to love each other. Love takes time, Elsa."

Elsa was speechless. She was not prepared for such an understanding response and a speech about love from her father of all people. "Now, Elsa... the wedding will go on. It has taken a lot of work to make this merger and your mother has put her heart into organising this wedding. Do not disappoint her. Now, is there anything else you would like to say?"

Elsa sighed once again, and shook her head. This was hopeless. Her father would not see it her way and she was going to be forced to marry that monster.

"Very well, you may go now. I have a lot of work to do."

All Elsa could do was stand and leave the room silently. As she entered the hallway and closed the study door behind her she had a realisation. All those things she had said about love... about how it made one feel... how could she possibly know that? True, she had read a lot of fiction novels based on romance but she wouldn't know the feeling itself unless...

'_Am I... could I be... in love with... Anna?_'

She had been thinking about the red headed woman all the while she was rambling about love to her father. It made sense to her now.

'_I am. I am in love with Anna._'

* * *

Over the next couple of days, Elsa spent a lot of time in the library looking at history books and official papers. She was doing all she could to learn as much as possible about the Andersons. What she found out was that they were an extremely large and powerful family. Hans had twelve older brothers, all of whom had married into various families of power just like Hans was planning on doing. Their family had managed to gain power and money over generations purely by marriage. And now they were one of the most influentially powerful families in Europe with one of the largest armies, having always been a military family for generations.

Apparently though, they were having many money problems recently. Since Hans' parents had become heads of the family, they were not careful with their money as they should be. So they had married off each of their sons to rich families in order to gain more wealth. So that is why they had agreed to marry into the Kristiansen family. They wanted all of Elsa's father's money for themselves. Once Hans became Lord of Arendelle, he would inherit it all. And in doing so, his parents would also have have access to it.

And Lord Kristiansen had agreed to marry Elsa off to them in order to gain some of their military. Arendelle needed more soldiers and the Andersons of The Southern Isles were trying to gain more money for themselves.

When Elsa retired to her bedchamber for the evening, three days before the wedding, she was surprised to see her mother already waiting for her in her room. She was sitting on the edge of Elsa's bed, a pile of books behind her.

"Elsa! There you are, dear! Come, sit down with your mother." She patted the space on the bed next to her and Elsa obliged, sitting down. "Now, there is a little something I would like to talk to you about, if that's alright?"

"Of course, mother," Elsa replied, hoping to get this over with as soon as possible.

"Very good! Now as you know, the wedding is coming up so very soon and I couldn't be more excited to see my daughter marry such an amazing young man!"

Elsa subtly rolled her eyes at the woman next to her, as she praised Hans once again.

"And I wanted to talk to you about... your wedding night."

"Mother!" Elsa exclaimed. "Honestly, there is no need to-"

"Now, now, Elsa. As your mother, it is my job to talk to you about such things. So... here we go... when a man and a woman love each other very much-"

"_Mother! I know!_" Elsa whispered harshly, putting her face in her hands to cover the embarrassed blush on her cheeks.

"Elsa! Let me finish."

"Mother, please... do _not _finish! I know what happens. I know how it works. I do not need you to explain in detail what is to happen to me. _Please_."

Her mother sighed in defeat.

"Very well, Elsa. I suppose it is a little... embarrassing isn't it? Having your mother talk to you about sex."

Elsa let out a groan as her mother continued to talk. Why would this woman never be quiet?

"But I have a little something for you." Her mother motioned to the three books sitting behind them. "I would like you to read these. I know you are a very avid reader so I'm sure you will get through them in no time. They are little risqué, I must say, but they will help you I suppose. They will give you a little more information about... you know..."

"Yes, mother, thank you." Elsa was still blushing furiously and needed her mother to leave before she actually died of embarrassment.

"Okay, I will leave you to it." And with that, her mother left the room.

Elsa looked down at the books on her bed, her face still red. There was no point in reading these... she had already read each one countless times. Little did her mother know, but Elsa had been reading these sorts of books since she was around seventeen years old. How else would she have learned about what would happen on her wedding night?

The books her mother had picked out hadn't much phased Elsa when she had read them previously. Not like one in particular did, one that still resided in the library. There was a book in there, Elsa had no idea why they owned it, but it was a romance novel. A very descriptive erotic novel about the secret and forbidden love between two young women. Now that book had excited Elsa in ways she could not describe. That was the book she'd rather read.

Elsa sighed and put the books on her bedside table, out of the way. She reached for the envelope under her pillow as she had done so many times before, and began to read the letter that was inside. She needed Anna to come home right away.

* * *

Tomorrow. She would be getting married tomorrow. And still no sign of Anna. As soon as she had awoken early that morning, Elsa had been pacing her room frantically. The moment she started to pace, the snow had started. For two entire hours now, she had been walking back and forth in the snow storm that was getting worse by the minute. She kept running her hands roughly through her hair worryingly, hoping for some sort of miracle to bring Anna back to her. Thinking about it realistically though, Elsa knew something terrible must have happened to her. Anna would be dead by now. Either that or she had just completely forgotten about her and broken her promise to come home. Whichever it was that had happened did not bode well for Elsa at all.

No, Elsa knew Anna would not forget about her. If anything, she probably would have perished on her way home. After all, the open sea posed a lot of dangers out there. Funnily enough, the thought of Anna dead didn't make her feel any better than the thought of her living a luxurious life somewhere without her.

That was it, Anna was gone... forever. Anna was gone and Elsa would have to marry into the Anderson family. She would forever be living in misery with the man who had threatened to lock her up and all but guaranteed to mistreat her thoroughly.

She just couldn't take it anymore. Elsa collapsed onto the floor and sobbed. She spent her last day of freedom laying hopelessly on the floor crying her heart out while it snowed harshly all around her. She cried and cried until she was too exhausted to do so anymore and finally fell asleep in the early afternoon. The weeks of not sleeping most nights had finally caught up with Elsa and not a sound would be able to wake her from the deep sleep.

Elsa's personal maid, Gerda, came into her room a few hours later to check on the young woman, finding her asleep in the middle of the floor. Not wanting to wake the obviously exhausted girl, she placed a soft blanket over her for comfort and left the girl in peace. The older woman had been worried about Elsa more and more since the engagement announcement. She could see the negative affect it was having on her physical and mental health. But she also knew there was nothing she could do about, being nothing but a maid.

And so, Gerda did what she could to make life more comfortable for Elsa, whom she had helped taken care of since her birth. She left the room quietly as Elsa snuggled into the blanket, falling ever deeper into slumber.

* * *

The mist had been getting worse. Ever since Anna and William had figured out where they were and navigated a route to Arendelle, their surrounding vision was not improving. Nobody on the boat, even Johnny who spent his time high up on look out all the time, could not see more than a few feet in front of the ship.

Anna was proving to be a fine Captain. The crew, with the exception of Hamilton, would follow her orders without hesitation. Even the prisoners they had released from the Frigate's hold were proving their loyalty to her. Of course, they were just happy to be alive after being captured. It turned out they were in the same position as Anna and her boys. Ex-Privateers being mistaken for pirates and captured by the Spanish Navy to be hanged.

After a good two weeks, Anna figured they must be close to Arendelle soon. William had predicted it would take a fortnight to travel there from their current position.

In the meantime, Connor had raided the previous Captain's quarters to see if he could find anything of any use in there. He had found a black tricorn hat with a pine green feather residing on top. As well, he had come across an evidently barely used and very expensive sword; A Spanish Rapier. The hilt was made of solid gold and twisted elegantly around her hand when she held it. There was a single small emerald on the very end of the handle, which would have increased it's worth about twice as much.

Since the afternoon that Connor had presented her with a new sword and hat, Anna hadn't done anything without them upon her person. She added a new sheath to the other side of her hip in order to hold her new sword, whilst also keeping her trusty old one on her other side. And the hat had never left her head.

She had named the sword Wayfinder. And using that, and her old one, Swiftblade, she had started to practice fighting with two. She was training in the art of duel wielding. Kristoff had helped her out to start off with, but now she spent many of her waking hours practising away alone as they sailed for Arendelle. And she was getting quite good at it, if she did say so herself. It was hard to get used to, but once she got the hang of it, she had gained quite the talent, which would be very useful for battle no doubt.

On one particular evening, Anna was up on the quarterdeck with Kristoff at the Helm. He often sailed the ship now in order to give Anna more time to practice with her swords. He didn't mind though, he quite enjoyed sailing the ship from time to time.

Anna was bounding about behind him, swaying her swords in all directions, teaching herself different moves. Until she stopped after having a sudden thought.

"Hey, Kristoff?" She asked.

"Yeah?" He called out to her as she made her way to stand next to him.

"You know, seeing as we kind of... _stole_ this ship... does that make us... pirates now?" She asked, sounding more curious than anything. Kristoff thought it over for a moment. She did have a point.

"You know... I think we are. It depends. Are we keeping this ship forever and using it in order to sail the world and collect money in less that honest ways?" He mentioned, curious himself as to their plans.

"Well, yeah. I like this ship and I'm the Captain now! I can't not keep it, silly! And, you know, we do _need_ to get some money _somehow_! How else would we survive?! We'd need it to purchase provisions and fix the ship up and things! Plus, it's always nice to have money." Anna explained.

"Well, then," Kristoff replied. "I guess that makes us official Pirates now. All we need is to get a new flag."

"Huh... I guess we are." Somehow, after everything she'd been through recently, turning to Piracy didn't much phase Anna as it would have done just mere months ago.

Not too high above the ship, Anna heard a seagull. She looked up into the late evening sky to see it gliding around in circles above them. And as they sailed on, more seagulls appeared. As the number of birds increased up above, so did Anna's level of excitement and anticipation. She knew they would be docking soon.

And sure enough, with the exclamation from Johnny up from the lookout, she noticed the faint outlines of a town through the fog in the distance. As they got closer, Anna recognised the familiar buildings of the town she had grown up in. She was finally home.

As soon as the ship docked in Arendelle, Anna gave Kristoff some implicit instructions.

"Make sure everyone behaves themselves. Take them to the tavern or something and get them all some well needed drinks and rest. You've all deserved it."

"And what about you?" Kristoff asked, already knowing the answer.

"Oh I'll be back whenever. I'll meet with you here tomorrow at midday just to check in and maybe bring a guest with me? I don't know, we'll see. I just _really _have to go!"

Kristoff chuckled at her.

"Alright, alright get out of here, Feisty Pants. Go get your woman."

"Thanks Kristoff!" Anna yelled as she ran towards the market.

All too soon, Anna had reached the Kristiansen Manor. She found her way to the familiar tree and made the small journey up and across to what she knew to be the balcony doors to Elsa's room.

The curtains were drawn, as they should have been at this time, so Anna couldn't see inside. She wasn't entirely sure if Elsa would even be in there but she had to try anyway.

Anna, her heart pounding and her hands shaking, held her breath and knocked.

* * *

**A/N: SHE'S HOME! OH JOY! Told you she'd be back in Arendelle this chapter! So sorry for the cliffhanger not sorry aha! ;D The next chapter is going to be UH-MAZING! ;)))) Elsanna ahoy! My bbys are finally going to be back together! I'm sorry for this long and cruel time apart, it's even killed me not to have them together for all this time. But they'll be back now! Only thing is... has she made it in time before the wedding?! :o Find out next week! Next chapter will be up in about 5-7 days! As always, I look forward to all your reviews, ugh you guys are funny c': Hope you enjoyed this one!**


	12. Chapter 12

**A word of warning to you all, do NOT read this chapter in public, around your family, on the bus, in school... anywhere. Read it in the safe confinements of your bedroom. thank you. You have been warned.**

**This chapter is dedicated to my three favourite reviewers: Sara, Hannah3elsanna, and Queenofthefrozennorthmountain. You crazy bitches, you! I always have a laugh reading your reviews :'D**

**And on that note, on with the next chapter. This is legit my longest one yet, oh my!**

* * *

A slight tapping sound awoke Elsa from her slumber. She had no idea what time it was or even how she had come to sleep in the middle of her floor. Before her brain could focus on anything, she heard the tapping sound again. No, not tapping... it was more of a knocking. It sounded like someone was knocking. She figured it must have been very late into the night now, so who would be knocking on her door at this time?

She heard it a third time and someone called her name.  
"Elsa?" It sounded only to be just above a whisper. "Elsa, are you there? It's me... Anna."

Not again. She knew what was happening. She had experienced this dream countless times before. So many times had she woken up, still half asleep, and thought she'd heard knocking at her balcony door. So many times had Anna called out to her. So many times had she run up to it and thrust it open in desperation. And so many times had she burst into tears because Anna was not there. Anna was never there and she never would be again.

Elsa was fully awake now, having stood up and picked the blanket which had previously covered her off the floor. The knocking would stop now she was no longer still half asleep.

And yet...

There it was again.

"Elsa, please... I know you're in there." Anna's voice continued. Could it be? "I heard you stirring... please open up... I've come home."

It _was_ Anna! It had to be this time... Elsa was too awake for it to be a dream. She discarded the blanket onto the floor once again and ran for the balcony door. Throwing open the curtains, Elsa's heart hammered as she flung the doors wide open.

Anna was there. Anna was _actually_ there! Before either of them could say a word, Elsa launched herself at the other girl and embraced her so tight, Anna almost lost her balance as her hat tumbled off her head.

She positioned her face down into Anna's neck as she felt the other girl's arms wrap around her tightly. Elsa's senses became suddenly overwhelmed as Anna's smell hit her. She had missed that smell... the smell that comforted her and even made her feel somewhat safe. But there was a little something extra to it now. Elsa could make out the smell of the sea air upon Anna. She smelled like the ocean. And Elsa loved it.

"I'm home, Elsa." She faintly heard Anna whisper. "I'm home. I told you I'd be back!"

Elsa couldn't help but let out a laugh, the relief and pure happiness of the moment overtaking her.

They pulled away from each other slightly, their foreheards touching.

"You're late," was all Elsa could say through her smile, tears running down her face.

"Yeah... sorry about that... I got... held up." Anna replied sheepishly.

Elsa brought Anna's forehead to her lips and placed a gentle kiss on the younger woman's soft skin.

"It's okay, you're home now. That's all that matters. You are back and you are safe." Elsa spoke softly as she touched her forehead with Anna's again. "I have prayed and prayed for weeks for you to come home safe. And here you are, just when I needed you the most. Perhaps you should come inside properly and sit down. I imagine you'll be getting cold standing in the breeze like this." Elsa moved to let Anna in and shut the blacony doors once more, leaving the curtains open and letting the room fill with moonlight. She picked Anna's hat up off the floor and turned around to make her way after the other girl.

Anna had placed herself on the edge of Elsa's bed, waiting for the blonde girl to join her. Elsa took a seat next to her and placed Anna's hat behind them. Her hands then immediately found their way to her lap. Anna reached over and gently took Elsa's hands in her own, both of them finding comfort in the contact.

Elsa looked towards the other girl and the smile on Anna's face was absolutely breathtaking. The blonde's heart was pounding in her chest, still unable to believe this was happening.

"So..." Elsa started, her voice shaking from excitement and nerves. "What... what took you s-so long?" She asked, almost not wanting to know the answer.

"Oh, um..." Anna chuckled nervously, definetely not wanting to tell Elsa everything that had happened. "Well, you see... there was a bit of a... um... something happened, I guess. Something not so great."

Elsa continued to look at Anna, waiting patiently for her to explain.

"Um, there was an incident on the way home. After the end of the war and we were all on our way back, we were attacked." Elsa gasped and Anna continued. "A fleet of Spanish ships, including a Galleon, attacked our ship and we were sorely defeated. Only eight of us survived, including me of course, and Kristoff... but... our Captain was killed and I took a good hit to the head... see?" She lifted the front of her hair up to show Elsa the scar that now resided on her hairline.

"Oh Anna..." Elsa lifted her hands up to Anna's face and she brought it towards her, placing a second gentle kiss on the other girl's forehead that night, this time right on the scar. "You silly thing, getting yourself in danger like that."

"Hey, I knew all the possibilities of what could happen when I took that job. I was always prepared to get hurt at some point. It's okay, Elsa, honestly... I'm fine now."

Elsa looked down to Anna, her face still in her hands, and raised an eyebrow at the younger woman. "I'm fine! Honestly! It's just a little scar now, there's no need to worry."

"Yes, but that could have been a lot worse than just a scar. A hit on the head could seriously damage you, Anna. Gods don't you ever worry me like this again! I _knew _something had happened to you! I could _feel _it! I knew something went wrong!" Elsa was getting herself in a state now, tears once again falling softly down her face as she thought of all the things that Anna may have been through.

"Elsa, it's okay now, I am completely fine! I'm here, aren't I? I made it back okay and I'm fine. Anyway, listen to this..."

Anna told Elsa all about their time in confinement and how they were due to be hanged, about how she planned their escape. She explained how she managed to steal a ship in a fleet and sail it through a storm in order to get away. And then how she had been named Captain of that ship. And Elsa... well, Elsa was thoroughly impressed to say the least. By the time Anna had finished telling her everything that happened, Elsa was speechless. She could not find the words to say anything about what Anna had managed to do.

Eventually she managed to whisper,  
"Anna... that.. wow... you are... so amazing..."

At those words, a blush appeared on Anna's cheeks.  
"What? No... I just... I needed to... I made a promise, remember? I promised you I would come back to you and I wasn't going to let a little thing like imprisonment on a Spanish Galleon stop me!"

Before she even realised what she was doing, Elsa leaned in and planted a soft kiss on Anna's lips. She'd been longing to do that since Anna's arrival. Anna reacted and deepened the kiss, bringing her hands to the back of Elsa's neck, pulling her closer. The blonde girl wrapped her arms around Anna, needing her to know... to _feel_ in this kiss, how proud she was of her. How much she needed her. And how much she loved her.

When they finally pulled apart, arms still around each other and breathing heavy, neither of them would stop smiling.

"Gods, I've missed you," Anna managed to whisper. "I've missed you so much, Elsa."

"And I have missed you, Anna. My heart has ached every day for you since you left. I cannot even begin to tell you what I have been through since you've been gone. Anna... I... I don't know what to do..." Elsa cried, tears falling down her face once again. Anna could feel the blonde's body shaking in her embrace.

"Elsa... what's happened?" She pleaded. "If anything is wrong, I will fix it. If anyone has hurt you, I swear, I will sort it out. I will do anything you need me to do. Please, just... tell me."

It took a few moments for Elsa to calm herself down enough to talk, but she managed to tell Anna everything that happened.

"It all started on my birthday..." And before she could get anything out, Anna interrupted.

"Your birthday?! When was it your birthday?! Oh Gods, I've missed it! I didn't even get you anything! Oh Elsa, I am so sorry! I should have been here to celebrate it with you!" Anna panicked.

Elsa almost laughed at Anna's rambling.  
"But you did get me something," she said.

"Wait... what?" Anna looked confused. "I don't understand. What did I-?"

Elsa reached for the caged blue Pearl she kept around her neck and underneath her clothes, smiling at the memory of when she had received it.

"This arrived on my birthday. My maid placed it on my bed during my birthday party and I came in that evening to this. It was such a surprise but my God, Anna... it's so beautiful. Thank you so much! It is truly the best birthday present I have ever received, thank you." Elsa placed another small kiss on Anna's forehead. "You are such a wonderful, kind, and thoughtful person, Anna. You really are."

Anna was blushing again at Elsa's words.  
"Ehhh, no I'm just... I don't know... I just needed you to have it, I guess. I couldn't think of anyone else more deserving of it than you."

"Oh Anna..." Elsa managed a slight chuckle before her face fell again. "Something happened... on my birthday."

Anna furrowed her eyebrows as Elsa spoke. The older girl told her all about what had happened on her birthday; the engagement announcement, her father hitting her, Hans' threat. Everything. She spoke of everything she had been through since then. And Anna's jaw dropped more and more as she went on. To think that _anyone_ could treat Elsa this way was just outrageous. To her, Elsa was perfect and precious and needed absolute taking care of, to make sure nothing bad ever happened to her. And her family no less were all but selling her to such a horrible man who was threatening to lock her away just because she had this magic of hers.

By the time Elsa had finished explaining everything up until her falling asleep earlier that afternoon, Anna's blood was absolutely boiling. Her rage was causing her to shake and her hands had balled up into tight fists.

Before Elsa could stop her, Anna had stood and was pacing frantically around Elsa's room.

"Anna?" Elsa asked apprehensively. "Please, come sit back down..."

"No, Elsa! No! I just...! I cannot _believe_ anyone could treat you... like _that_!" Her voice was shaking from anger. Elsa could tell nothing would calm her down right now, but she needed to try before Anna did anything rash. She got too her feet and made her way to where Anna was walking back and forth. Once she reached her, she grabbed hold of the shorter girl's shoulders firmly, forcing her to stop pacing.

"Anna _please_... calm down!" Elsa pleaded.

"I _can't_! You cannot tell me to calm down! I need to do something about this!" Anna's voice was raising now. Elsa, afraid someone would hear the commotion at this late hour, tried once again to calm her.

"Anna... please, you must be quiet right now. I know this has upset you but-"

"No Elsa, you don't understand. I need to kill him. I _need _to kill this _Hans_!" The way she said his name was filled with pure venom. She tried to turn and leave, adamant to go and hurt this man as much as she could right now, but Elsa still had a firm grip on her shoulders.

"Anna! _Please_, I am begging you... please just... stay. For now, just for tonight, just stay with me."

Anna sighed, trying to calm down. Her body still shaking, she asked,  
"When's the wedding?"

"Tomorrow." Elsa whispered, not wanting Anna to know just how soon it really was going to happen.

"_Tomorrow_?! No, I can't let you go through with that, Elsa! I will_ not_ let you marry that... that... _monster_! I need to-"

Before Anna could say another word, Elsa had brought her lips down to Anna's, giving her the chance to get her aggression out in this kiss. It worked.

Anna's reaction was instantaneous as she kissed Elsa back, placing her hands on the other woman's hips and pulling her closer. Elsa's breath hitched at the touch and after a few moments, she had to pull away slightly, suddenly finding it difficult to breathe. The two women stood in the centre of the room, foreheads touching once again and panting as they tried to compose themselves. A soft flurry of snow had started to fall above them, unnoticed by the two.

"I-I'm sorry... I just... I don't-" Anna started to say, still unable to breath evenly.

"Anna..." Elsa whispered. Anna looked up and held Elsa's gaze for a few seconds before she continued. "Just... shut up and kiss me."

And with that, every other thought left Anna's mind other than the need to kiss Elsa. Their lips met once again, desperation fuelling each of them. A quiet moan escaped Anna's mouth, and as the kiss deepened, the flurry of snow above them became heavier.

Anna tightened her grip on Elsa's hips, causing the blonde to shudder at the touch. Elsa had now raised her hands to the back of Anna's head, grabbing onto the red hair. Anna moaned once again, louder this time, as Elsa ran one hand up the back of her head, scratching lightly with her fingers.

Before she even realised what she was doing, Elsa's hands had found their way back to Anna's shoulders and she pushed her against the back of the bedroom door, not once breaking the kiss. Once she had been backed into the door, Anna's arms wrapped themselves tightly around Elsa's waist, trying constantly to pull the other woman ever closer and not wanting to let her go; not wanting this moment of pure bliss to end.

Anna gently dragged her tongue against Elsa's bottom lip before gently grazing it with her teeth. This time, it was Elsa's turn to moan. She shuddered once more, almost losing her balance as her knees nearly gave in.

As they broke away from each other, Elsa was holding on to Anna for dear life, fearing her knees would not last much longer. Their breathing was heavy and the falling snow gradually turned to a soft flurry once more.

Anna didn't loosen her grip around Elsa's waist, keeping the woman as close as possible for as long as she could.

"I-I'm... sorry..." Anna panted, "I got... a bit... carried away..."

"No..." Elsa shook her head softly as she managed to somehow find her voice. "Again."

"What?" Anna murmured, surprised at Elsa's response.

"Again." Elsa repeated, more sure of herself this time.

Anna didn't delay for another second as she grabbed Elsa by the back of the thighs and lifted her up, Elsa wrapping her legs around Anna's body. Somewhere in the back of Elsa's mind, she was rather surprised at how strong Anna actually was. But in this moment she was too distracted by Anna's lips upon her own once again to dwell on it.

Elsa felt herself up against the door as Anna switched their positions. The younger woman took hold of Elsa's bottom lip once more, gently pulling it between her teeth. Elsa's moan encouraged Anna to go further and she carried her to the bed, placing her down gently atop the covers and leaning over her. They stared intently into each's others eyes for a few moments, each taking in the beauty of the other. Anna held Elsa's gaze, silently asking if she wanted to carry on, knowing that for the blonde, this could all be a little too much. Elsa gave a slight nod in reply.

"We don't have to..." Anna whispered, not wanting to push Elsa into anything.

"Please, I want to..."Elsa replied, her voice almost inaudible. Anna was surprised at how far Elsa was willing to take this. She planted a soft kiss on Elsa's lips before standing, pulling Elsa up into a sitting position on the edge of the bed. Anna removed her boots quickly before climbing onto the bed and kneeling up behind Elsa.

As Elsa felt Anna's breath on the back of her exposed neck, she shivered involuntarily and found it suddenly difficult to breath. The snow that was seemingly falling from the ceiling had begun to swirl around the bed, trapping the two women in a soft and gentle vortex.

If breathing became difficult when she felt Anna's breath, it was nothing compared to the moment when Anna placed a kiss right on the back of Elsa's neck. Elsa released a soft moan as Anna kissed her one more time. Elsa realised she very much liked being kissed in that spot.

Anna moved her face up to Elsa's ear and spoke softly.  
"Are you sure you want to?"

Elsa could only nod, unable to speak due to the combination of nerves and utter pleasure she was feeling.

"Okay," Anna continued. "I'll go slow. And at any moment, if you want to stop, then we will. I promise we are not going to do anything you're not ready to do."

Elsa nodded in confirmation. Anna smiled and kissed Elsa gently just behind her ear and leaving a trail of kisses down the side of the older girl's neck. Elsa shivered under Anna's every touch, not being able to comprehend the effect she was having on her. Sure, Elsa had read some _very_ descriptive novels, but never had she imagined that being in this situation would feel so good. Elsa's heart hadn't stopped racing since their first kiss that evening and every time Anna touched any part of her it felt like electricity running through her body, and her breathing became difficult in a way she had never experienced before.

Anna moved herself around to Elsa and stood in front of her, Elsa still sitting upon the bed. Anna bent down slightly and held Elsa's face in her hands as she kissed her. Before Elsa had a chance to deepen it however, Anna had moved her hands to Elsa's waist and started kissing softly along Elsa's jaw and towards her neck again. Elsa instinctively grabbed at the back of Anna's head, keeping her in place. As Anna reached the blonde's neck, Elsa grasped at the red hair underneath her hands.

She could feel Anna moan softly against her neck and it only made her grip on Anna's hair tighten.

As Anna felt the grip on her hair, she wanted nothing more than to bite down hard on Elsa's neck. But, as promised, she continued to go slowly as she kissed her way down her neck. She pulled at the collar of Elsa's deep blue gown in order to have better access to the blonde's collarbone. Elsa's grip on Anna's hair still hadn't loosened, and once Anna placed a first kiss on her collarbone, her fingers actually ached from how tightly she was holding the younger woman in place.

Anna made her way along Elsa's collarbone with soft kisses until she reached the middle of her chest. With the hold she had on the front of Elsa's gown, Anna could just make out the top of Elsa's corset underneath. She lowered her mouth and placed a single kiss on the very top of Elsa's breast. The moan that Elsa released in that moment spurred Anna on to kiss her again in the same spot. She was rewarded with yet another soft moan from Elsa.

Anna pulled her head up to face Elsa, who still had a tight grip on the younger woman's hair, and held her gaze for a few seconds, making sure Elsa was still alright.

"You okay?" Anna breathed. Elsa gave a shaky nod without saying a word, now completely unable to speak. The flurrying vortex around the bed was still ongoing and only now did Anna notice it was snowing.

"When did this start?" She asked with a slight laugh. Elsa finally let go of Anna's hair and shrugged, smiling fondly at the woman standing in front of her. Forgetting the flurry as soon as Elsa smiled at her, Anna asked her, "do you want to carry on?"

Elsa, somehow managing to find her voice, looked straight into Anna's eyes and whispered ever so quietly,  
"Yes."

Anna could tell Elsa was beyond nervous. She guessed she had never done anything like this with anyone before. Had Elsa even kissed anyone before Anna? Probably not, considering she had been shut away from the world her entire life. And so, Anna was determined to make this night as absolutely perfect and comfortable as she could for Elsa.

Anna tugged gently at the waist of Elsa's gown.  
"Can I...?" She started to ask.

Elsa, understanding what Anna was asking, gave her another nod.

Anna let go of Elsa's waist and reached around Elsa's neck to the top of her back. The redhead found the ribbon at the top of the gown and swiftly pulled it undone. As she finished loosening the ribbon down Elsa's back, she brought the blonde up to her feet and slowly pulled the gown down her body and letting it fall at her feet.

Elsa stood there in front of Anna, her under clothes now on show. Elsa blushed as Anna saw her in what she considered to be highly underdressed. She was now wearing only her shift and an elegant ivory coloured corest, along with a petticoat and stockings.

Anna did her best to look at Elsa's face, not wanting the blonde to feel too uncomfortable if she stared at her. Anna pushed down gently on Elsa's shoulders, prompting her to sit back on the bed. Elsa did so and Anna once again climbed over to sit behind her.

She took a moment to admire the back of Elsa with one less piece of clothing on before she carried on. She started to fiddle with the back of the corset, trying her best to undo it as quick as she could. Being a woman of high society, Elsa's corset was much more complex to what Anna was used to. She still managed, however, and after a while the garment was discarded onto the floor with the gown.

Elsa was still sat on the edge of the bed, shaking with nerves and excitement as Anna threw her corset to the floor. The younger woman came to sit next to Elsa, looking at her and smiling warmly. Elsa smiled back anxiously, her hands wringing together in her lap. Anna leant over and took Elsa's hands in her own.

"It's okay, Elsa. We can stop if you want..."

Elsa shook her head. As nervous as she was, the last thing she wanted to do was stop. "Okay," Anna continued. "Do you think you could take mine off now?" She asked, laughing shakily, her own nerves starting to show.

"O-okay..." Elsa replied. Anna turned to face away from Elsa as the older girl fiddled with the back of Anna's corset. It was a lot simpler than Elsa's own, dark brown in colour and with easier fastenings at the back. Despite this, though, Elsa took a while to take it off due to the absolute shaking of her hands.

Once she was done, and Anna's corset joined Elsa's on the floor, Anna turned back to her, now wearing naught but a shirt and a pair of black breeches. Elsa was now only wearing her shift, petticoat and stockings.

"Now lay back on the bed, Love," Anna instructed softly. Elsa did so, if not a little awkwardly, as she backed up and rested her head on the pillows. Anna came to position herself on top of Elsa, their foreheads touching yet again. Anna, her face serious, asked for the final time, "Do you want to...?" Elsa nodded. "If, at any time, you want me to stop, just say so and I will right away, okay?" For the last time, Elsa nodded in agreement to Anna before they continued.

Anna placed a small kiss on Elsa's forehead and trailed her right hand down Elsa's face. She then carried on to lightly trace her fingers down Elsa's neck, shoulder and the side of her body. She stopped at Elsa's waist, where her hand met the top of Elsa's petticoat. She kneeled up and brought her left hand to the other side of Elsa's waist and gently pulled the piece of clothing off.

Elsa was shaking, more so than she had ever done before. The pure excitement and nerves really had a hold on her. She wished she could be more composed in front of Anna as the younger woman undressed her, but at the very least, Anna was also shaking slightly. Evidently, they were just as nervous as each other.

Anna then took her time to take Elsa's stockings off. Starting with her left leg, she slid it down agonisingly slow. Anna repeated this action with Elsa's other stocking and revealed Elsa's long, bare legs. The only item of clothing she had on now was her shift, which came down to just above her knee.

Before Anna took Elsa's final item of clothing off, she thought it best to undress herself more as well, in order to make Elsa feel more at ease. And so, still kneeling above Elsa, she started to unbutton her shirt. All Elsa could do was lay motionless underneath the younger woman, and stare as she undressed herself. With each button she undid, Elsa could see more and more of her exposed body. The freckles that she had on her face also went down her neck and onto her chest. Elsa was having the overwhelming urge to kiss each and every one of them.

Once Anna had finally unbuttoned the shirt, she slid it off herself, revealing to Elsa her bare chest and stomach. Before Elsa knew what she was doing, she grabbed onto Anna's hips. Anna gasped at the sudden contact. While Elsa had a hold of her, she took the opportunity to take her hair out from it's braids. Considering all the hair grabbing Elsa had done previously, it would prove better for the both of them if she wore it loose for the rest of the night.

She shuffled back slightly and pulled Elsa up into a sitting position, Anna straddling her lap now. Elsa ran her hands up Anna's waist and around to her back, placing small kisses upon her freckled neck. Anna was in complete ecstasy at the way Elsa was touching her now, and she grabbed onto the back of Elsa's head, pulling her hair down loose in the process.

"Elsa," Anna whispered as Elsa kissed her way to Anna's collarbone. The way Anna had said her name spurred her on even more. She remembered how much she enjoyed it when Anna had kissed her in this area. She held on to Anna's waist tightly and moved along Anna's left collarbone with her lips and down her chest. Elsa moved her face down to Anna's right breast and kissed the soft skin tenderly, as she anxiously brought her right hand up from Anna's waist and carressed the other one. The moan she got in return from Anna was insatiable to Elsa.

Hearing Anna moan like that awoke a courage in Elsa she had never felt before. She nipped lightly and Anna's chest and brought her left hand to the waist of Anna's breeches, silently requesting to take them off. Anna nodded and Elsa unbuttoned them at the waist and pulled them down Anna's thighs. Anna then slid them off the rest of her legs, and was now wearing absolutely nothing but a pair of thin linen drawers.

Anna then gently tugged at Elsa's shift, asking Elsa as she did so,  
"Can I?"

"Yes," Elsa breathed, barely managing to speak that single word. Anna pulled the shift up over Elsa's head, her body now on complete show.

Elsa laid herself back on the bed and pulled Anna down with her, pulling her into a passionate kiss. Anna gently nipped at her lip once again and pulled away, admiring every single inch of the woman beneath her. Anna had truly never seen anyone quite so radiant.

"Wow..." Anna whispered.

Elsa blushed, feeling suddenly very exposed.  
"What?" She asked apprehensively.

"You are... so... beautiful."

Elsa's face turned a darker shade of red at the compliment. Anna placed a gentle, loving kiss on Elsa's lips before she carried on.

She lightly traced a single finger down the middle of Elsa's chest and stomach. Elsa took a sharp intake of breath when Anna reached the bottom of her stomach and moved across to stroke her hip. She brought the finger down to Elsa's thigh, teasing her as she stroked down the inside of her leg. Anna moved the finger back up Elsa's thigh, even slower this time. She finally reached inbetween Elsa's legs, and the blonde's hips jerked upwards as Anna lightly stroked up the length of her. The two women moaned together as Anna felt how wet Elsa was.

Anna brought her finger slowly back down and gently pushed it inside of Elsa. The blonde's back arched at the contact as she grabbed at the sheets beneath her. As Elsa's body rose beneath her, Anna gradually pulled her finger out and back in again. Elsa's entire body reacted to the way Anna was touching her.

She maintained this action, letting Elsa get used to the feeling of Anna inside of her. Elsa's heavy breathing was starting to become soft moans as Anna continued, speeding up ever so slightly. Anna brought her face down to Elsa's and kissed her in order to try and stifle the noises coming from the blonde's mouth. The feeling of Elsa moaning into her mouth though, triggered Anna to start using her thumb. Keeping her finger moving in and out of Elsa, she brought her thumb up to Elsa's clit and brushed lightly against it.

Anna pulled her lips away from Elsa's as the blonde woman bucked her entire body at the way Anna touched her. Anna placed her head into Elsa's neck. As Elsa's moans got ever louder and whispered into her ear,  
"Shhhh now, Love."

Elsa tried her hardest, biting her lip to silence herself, but it was proving to be difficult.  
"Anna...!" She moaned into the younger woman's ear, her hips rising in order to push herself further into Anna's finger. She held onto Anna's shoulders now, digging her nails into the bare skin. The snow vortex that had formed around them had become nothing less than a swirling snowstorm surrounding the bed.

Elsa could feel herself building up more and more until it was too intense for her to hold on anymore.

"Oh God, Anna I-"

"It's okay, I've got you, Elsa... Just let go." Elsa heard Anna's voice in her ear.

Elsa released one last moan as she did as Anna said. She let go. She felt nothing but overwhelming pleasure as she rode out the climax, Anna's finger and thumb still in place.

Anna slowly removed her finger and held Elsa in her arms as the older woman clung on to her, her orgasm fading.

Elsa was still panting heavily as Anna lifted her face to look her in the eye.

"You okay?" She asked, before placing a soft kiss on the tip of Elsa's nose.

Elsa, still quite unable to speak for the moment, simply nodded her head as she tried to catch her breath. The snow storm had gone back to the orginal flurrying vortex, as it lazily swirled around them.

Anna rolled off of Elsa, giving her room to breath, and laid beside her on the bed, smiling the entire time.

"Anna... I... that was..." Elsa tried to speak, still unable to find her words.

"It's okay, Elsa, you don't have to say anything just yet." Anna assured her. "That was amazing. And look at this snow!" She exclaimed, noticing it was still there.

Elsa blushed, embarrassed by what she had created. "You don't need to be embarrassed, Elsa. You know I think your magic is beautiful. I mean... wow! Look at this! It's truly wonderful!"

Elsa blushed even more, still not used to someone actually liking what her powers could do.

Anna pondered for a moment. "Hey, Elsa?"

"Yes, Anna?" She managed to say without stuttering.

"Was that... I mean... what we did... was it... your... first time?" Anna stumbled over her words, unsure whether she should even be asking such a thing.

"Mm-hmm," Elsa mumbled, feeling a little abashed at the admission. "Was it yours?"

"Oh... um... with a woman... yes." Anna replied, taking her turn to blush.

Elsa smiled and brushed her lips against Anna's, bringing a hand up to the younger woman's face as she did so. Anna smiled into the kiss as Elsa trailed her hand down Anna's neck and shoulder. She brought it down to Anna's side, the younger woman gasping at the sudden contact on her body.

Elsa rested her hand on Anna's hip, grasping it tightly as she pulled Anna closer to her.

Their lips parted and Anna was panting unevenly now.

"Elsa..." she breathed. "You don't have to-"

"I want to." Elsa stated, her voice quiet but firm. And Anna didn't protest any further.

Elsa moved her hands to pull Anna's drawers down and gently pushed her by her shoulders, so the younger woman was laying on her back. Elsa anxiously crawled on top of her, hoping she would now be able to make Anna feel as amazing as she had done with her.

She took a moment to admire Anna as she lay there, completely naked. Elsa was a little taken aback at how breathtakingly beautiful Anna really was. She leaned her head down to Anna's neck and started a soft trail of kisses downwards. She continued along her collarbone as she brought one of her hands upwards, the other one holding on to Anna's waist. She cupped Anna's breast with her right hand, caressing her nipple softly with her fingertips. Anna's breath hitched at the touch, a quiet moan escaping her. Elsa took this as a silent plea to not stop what she was doing.

Anna's hands had now found their way to Elsa's hair, grabbing on to the mass of blonde as Elsa touched her. Elsa was still kissing down Anna's collarbone and onto her chest now, moving her head to the left as she continued.

Her right hand still cupping one of Anna's breasts, Elsa placed soft kisses along the other one. Anna moaned Elsa's name as she kissed all down her body, both of Elsa's hands now back on her waist. Her hips jerked upwards once Elsa kissed a certain point of her stomach and she pulled Elsa back up by her hair, panting heavily as they stared at each other intently for a few moments.

Anna reached up to kiss the older woman, as Elsa started to move a hand down to Anna's hip. She traced her fingertips lightly over the inside of her thigh. With one finger, she then traced it upwards, feeling how wet Anna was for her. Again, Anna hips jerked, not wanting the feeling of Elsa touching her like this to stop.

Elsa slowly entered her finger inside of Anna, making the younger woman take a sharp intake of breath as she did so. Doing as Anna had done to her, Elsa started to move her finger in and out of Anna. Anna's hips were moving to the same speed as Elsa's finger and after a few moments, Elsa sped up slightly. She remembered what Anna had done with her thumb, and mimicked the movement. Anna was starting to moan slightly louder with every hip jerk.

It didn't take long for Anna to build up, having to eventually cover her mouth with her hand to muffle her moans. Seeing Anna having to do this, spurred Elsa on as she sped up a little more. Anna gripped on to Elsa with her free hand, her nails digging in to the soft skin of her back as she felt Elsa's finger move quickly inside of her.

Anna's back arched and her body gave one final jerk as her orgasm came. Elsa waited a moment before deciding to move her finger away, letting Anna ride it out as she was still touching her.

Anna's body fell back onto the bed as she panted heavily, trying to catch her breath. She wrapped her arms around Elsa, pulling her as close as possible. Elsa lifted her head to see Anna's face had an almighty grin upon it.

"What are you smiling at?" She asked, a slight smirk upon her face, already knowing the answer.

"Because I'm happy, silly!" Anna managed to say now her breathing was slightly more even.

Elsa rolled on to her side, beside Anna, and wrapped an arm around the younger woman, Anna's arms still firmly around her. A thought occured to her.

"Hey, Anna?" She whispered.

"Yes, my love?"

"You don't think..." Elsa was a little apprehensive at asking this. "I mean... do you think... we might have... rushed this a little?"

"What? No, not at all! I mean, it felt right didn't it? I know it felt right to me." Anna explained.

"And to me, too. I just... we don't really know... that much about each other." Elsa admitted.

"Elsa. We've got the rest of our lives to find out every little thing about each other." The younger woman said. "And I look forward to getting to know everything about you." Her smile never left her face as she spoke so sincerely.

Elsa smiled a little.  
"I supposed you are right." And the two women lay there together for a while, not saying a word.

"I missed you so much, you know." Anna spoke up after a few minutes of comfortable silence. "Every single second I was away, I thought about you. And it pained me being so far away from you for so long. I don't ever want to do that again, Elsa! I had no idea what you were going through and now I'm back and I've found out everything that's happened to you, I won't let it happen again. I won't leave again, Elsa... not without you. I love you!" Anna blurted out, without even realising what she was saying. She was rambling, but speaking from the heart.

Elsa was a little taken aback by what Anna had just told her. True, she felt the same way, but she had no idea that was how Anna felt.

"Oh! I'm sorry!" Anna said. "I didn't even... I-I don't know... where that... heh... sorry... I just... it's true, though. I... I love y-you, Elsa. And before you say anything, it's okay, you don't have to say it back. I just... I needed you to know how I felt. Sorry."

"Anna, stop apologising. You must never apologise for how you feel." Elsa told her.

"Heh... yeah, I suppose you're right." Anna blushed, wrapping her arms even tighter around the woman she held. "What are we going to do about tomorrow?" She asked, suddenly remembering Elsa's wedding day.

"Whatever happens tomorrow, we had today... and I will always remember it." Elsa spoke softly. "Tonight has truly been the best night of my life, Anna."

Elsa heard Anna give a light chuckle.  
"It was the best night of mine too. Elsa, you honestly make me feel the happiest I have ever been."

Elsa sighed as she closed her eyes, feeling completely content in that moment, laying beside Anna. The two women fell asleep not long after that, still holding each other in their arms until dawn.

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**Big shoutout to my gf for helping me write this chapter. Honestly, I found it so difficult and she had to type the dirty words for me :') Also big thanks to her for giving me some motivation and inspiration for writing it ;D**

**But srsly, this chapter stressed me out so much. I've never written smut before so you'll have to let me know how I did. I'm still stressing over it. Ugh. Anyway, thanks for reading! As always, reviews are so much appreciated. I love reading all about your Elsanna trash feelz!**

**Thanks, guys! :)**


	13. Chapter 13

**HELLO MY DEAR READERS! Now, I know this update has taken longer than usual so I would like to explain myself :) After uploading the last chapter, I really needed a break from writing for a few days and once I was ready to start writing again, life got in the way and I was just swamped with responsibility and such. I did plan on uploading this on Wednesday but I was just far too busy and far too tired to have it finished by then. Anyway, here it is. Here's where the adventure really starts! :D I'll be back to uploading once a week now so look forward to the next chapter next weekend! Hope you enjoy!**

**Shout out to my precious little anon who always makes my day when they mention how excited they are about this bloody fic! :D so sorry i didn't give you a chapter to read while you were away on your trip but this one is dedicated to you! Thanks for always sending me lovely messages ^^**

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For the second time in a row, Elsa was awoken by a knocking at her door. This time, it actually was her bedroom door.

"Miss Elsa?" She faintly heard Gerda's voice from the other side. Elsa groaned and turned over, not yet ready to face the day. She stretched her arm out and rested it on top of Anna, who was still sleeping soundly next to her. Before Elsa could even understand what was happening, her door opened.

Her eyes shot open at the sudden realisation of the scene her maid had just walked in on. She sat upright in bed, using her bedsheets to cover her still naked body.

"Honestly, Miss Elsa! I've been stood outside knocking for a good five minutes!" Gerda said as she came into the room and closed the door behind her. She looked over towards the bed where Elsa was sat petrified and Anna was still snoring lightly beside her, smiling fondly. To say Elsa was highly confused at the woman's reaction would be an understatement. "And this must be Anna, yes?"

At the sound of her name, Anna sat herself up suddenly, still half asleep with her bare chest on show.

"Yes, hello, Anna is here," She said groggily.

"Gerda, I-" Elsa started but the maid held up her hand to shush the younger woman.

"It's okay, Elsa. I know what's going on."

"But... _how_? How do you even know her name?" Elsa asked, still utterly bewildered.

"Who knows my name?" Anna asked, not yet fully awake.

Gerda chuckled at the young redhead and continued.

"I know about the letter, dear. I do come in to change your sheets frequently, you know. I noticed it a while back and recognised it as the one that was sent on your birthday. Naturally, curiosity got the better of me and i just _had_ to know who it was from and why you kept it. I must say, it brought a tear to my eye knowing someone out there cared for you so. And I am happy to finally meet her!"

Well, that at least made sense as to how she knew who Anna was, Elsa thought.

"But... Gerda I don't understand?" Elsa asked. Judging by the sun just peeking over the horizon and into the bedroom, it was still very early in the morning. Why was Gerda in here so early and with such a smile on her face? Anna, meanwhile, had her head drooped down by her chest and was snoring once again.

"Well... last night I heard a banging coming from your bedroom door, so I needed to come and see if everything was okay. As I walked up the hallway I heard... _ahem_... a certain... _noise_ coming from within. So I left you to it and pretended I hadn't heard a thing."

Elsa blushed furiously at the thought of Gerda hearing her and Anna having sex.

"Oh dear, don't be embarrassed! Everyone does it! Even _I_-"

"Gerda, _please_!"

Gerda chuckled again, before hurrying around the room. Elsa didn't even take note of what she was doing, too preoccupied with how today was going to turn out. She was supposed to be getting married today. She couldn't go through with it. Somehow, she had to escape this wedding.

After a few minutes lost in thought, Elsa looked up towards her maid. She was rooting through the wardrobe, picking out many an outfit and storing it into a large bag.

"Gerda? What are you doing?"

"I'm packing you a bag." She answered simply.

"Wait... what?"

Gerda sighed and turned towards Elsa, suddenly looking very serious.

"Miss Elsa... I have known you your whole life. I have helped to raise you and I have seen you grow from a mere newborn and into this beautiful young woman sitting before me. I have come to love you as if you were one of my own. And because of that, I can not and will not let you marry that man today.

Everybody else may fall for his charms but I know his type. I see through him, Miss Elsa, and I can tell what an absolutely horrible man he is. As is the rest of his family. And I have seen how the past few weeks since your birthday have affected you. You've been miserable since the engagement and I refuse to just sit back and let you be married off to_ him_."

Elsa was speechless as Gerda carried on. "When I learnt about Anna-"

"I'm awake!" Anna had woken up once again, properly this time it seemed. It took her a few seconds to realise where she was and who was here. Before long, she managed to make out Gerda stood before them and with an embarrassed yelp, pulled the covers over her head and collapsed on the mattress next to Elsa as she attempted to hide from the intruder.

"When I learnt about this lovely young lady here," Gerda gestured to Anna, who was now peeking out from under the covers. "I knew that there was someone out there who would take care of you. And last night when I was made aware of her presence, I planned to come wake you at sunrise and send you both on your way."

"Both of us?" Elsa asked.

"Why yes, of course, Miss Elsa! I'm not going to send young Anna away and let the wedding commence. Not if I can help it. So, I am packing you a bag and giving you the chance to get far away from here. Please, Miss Elsa... If you want to go, you must hurry. The both of you get dressed right away and go. Your mother will be awake soon and she will be in here straight away to help you prepare for the wedding, you know how eager she is about it."

This was all quite a bit for Elsa to take in. As for Anna, who had slowly re-emerged from under the covers, she was just sitting there, jaw dropped and eyes wide. She never thought trying to rescue Elsa from this wedding would be so easy.

Once Gerda had finished preparing a bag for Elsa, she then laid out her outfit for that day. "Come now, girls! Post-haste!" She ushered as she threw Elsa's shift in her direction. Elsa made no delay in putting it on as she quickly pulled it over her head and got out of bed. She then proceeded to hand Anna her clothes from the night before so the other woman could get dressed also. Anna managed to dress herself quickly in everything but her corset and boots.

Gerda made her way to exit the room saying, "I will go and find your mother, make sure she is delayed. Hurry and finish dressing. I will be back in thirty minutes."

Once Gerda had left, Anna made her way straight to Elsa, who was looking a little lost. She took her face gently in her hands and made her look at her.

"Elsa? What are you thinking?" She asked softly.

Elsa's eyes were wide with fear. Snow started to fall from the ceiling as it had done many a time before.

"I- I don't... I don't know... I just... what is happening? What do I- Oh Anna, what am I to do? Everyone is expecting so many different things from me today... what do I do?" Elsa asked, her voice shaking with anxiety.

"Elsa, you listen to me. You do only what you want to do. You don't need to give in to anyone's wishes other than your own. Don't listen to your parents or that man and get married to him just because they tell you to. Don't listen to your maid and leave just because she wants you to. Don't even ask me what I want you to do. You know I'd have you leave with me this second if I had my way. I wouldn't let you go through with this wedding if I can help it. But it isn't up to me. It's up to you. Now... what do _you_ want?" Anna asked her sincerely.

"I want you," was all Elsa could whisper. Anna smiled in response which eased Elsa a little.

"Okay. And are you okay coming with me on my ship? Are you okay leaving behind your home and your family? Because it is a big sacrifice, believe me." Anna wanted to make sure Elsa knew what she was in for. She needed her to know that no matter how much she wanted to be with Anna, life on that ship would be more difficult than she could imagine.

"Just take me with you, please Anna. I can't stay here any longer, I just _can't_!" Elsa pleaded.

"Okay, Elsa. We'll leave. We'll finish dressing and leave this place. As long as that's what you want."

Elsa leaned her forehead against Anna's and closed her eyes, feeling the warmth from Anna's hands on her face.  
"It is."

Anna leaned up and placed a quick kiss on the taller woman's forehead.  
"Then come on, we need to put some clothes on!" She laughed, looking down at Elsa who was only wearing her shift and stockings. "Come on, you'll need to help me with this," Anna stated as she picked her corset up off the floor.

The two women quickley dressed, helping each other where needs be, Anna getting repeatedly frustrated with Elsa's corset.

As Elsa was just pulling her gown on, a more simple one compared to what she was used to, Gerda re-entered the room.

"Quickly girls, your mother will be here soon."

They each put their shoes on and Anna placed her hat on her head. Elsa turned to Gerda and embraced her for what would most likely be their final time.

"I will miss you, Gerda." Elsa spoke, trying to hold back a sob.

"And I will miss you too, child. It has been honour to serve you, Miss Elsa."

"Once I leave, I will need you to go to my father. Run to him and tell him you came upon my room just now, empty. Say to him that I must have left in the middle of the night and do not let on that you had any knowledge of this. I will not have you get in trouble for me, Gerda. And... thank you... for _everything_!" This time, Elsa did sob.

They pulled away, tears falling down both of their faces.

"Now hurry! _Go_!" She ushered the two girls towards the balcony doors. Anna had Elsa's bag over her shoulder and took Elsa's hand in her free one. She gave it a quick reassuring squeeze as she smiled up at her. Elsa, in that moment, somehow felt that everything would be okay.

"Good bye Gerda," Elsa said as she opened the doors and made her way on to the balcony.

"Yeah, bye Gerda! It was nice to meet you!" Anna called out.

"Good bye, girls! Be safe! And you make sure you look after her now, Miss Anna!" Gerda said as she made her way out on to the balcony also. Anna was now helping Elsa across the balconies and to the tree. "I will have to go see you father now, Miss Elsa, so please, do _hurry_!"

Elsa looked back and nodded, smiling. As the two women climbed over the wall and landed on the other side, they heard screeching.

"OOOOHHHHHHH MY LORD KRISTIANSEN! ELSA HAS GOOOOONNNEEE! WHAT IF SOMETHING AWFUL HAS HAPPENED TO HER?! WHERE IS SHE? OH MY LORD, SHE HAS DISAPPEARED! WHICH I KNEW ABSOLUTELY NOTHING ABOUT UNTIL RIGHT THIS VERY SECOND! OH WHAT ARE WE TO DOOOOO?! CALL THE GUARDS! CALL THE NAVY! CALL SCOTLAND YARD! CALL THE KING! OH I NEED TO LAY DOWN!"

Elsa rolled her eyes at Gerda's dramatics and she brought the palm of her hand up, covering her face.

"Really, Gerda? _Really_?" She said, more to herself. Anna giggled at the occurence and took Elsa's hand once more. They ran down through the market and towards the docks. The two of them were in such a hurry that Anna couldn't stop herself when she ran passed a young boy and actually knocked him down with Elsa's bag. They had to stop momentarily in order to help him up. As Anna lifted him to his feet, she realised she actually knew this boy's face, but couldn't remember his name or where she had seen him.

"Oh, Miss Anna!" He exclaimed as he, too, recognised her. Anna tried so hard to place him but before she remembered, he jogged her memory for her. "It's me! Olaf!" He said, beaming excitedly.

"That's _right_! Olaf! what are you doing here?"

"Once I came to deliver Miss Elsa's letter I didn't leave. I liked it here so much, so I've been staying at the Inn. Oh, this must be Miss Elsa!" He turned towards the blonde woman in front of him and wrapped his arms around her. Elsa stiffened in his grip, not prepared for the sudden physical contact.

"_Olaf_!" Anna yelled, laughing. "What do you mean you didn't leave? Don't you have a home to go to? Parents or anyone?"

"Nope!" The boy replied, still embracing Elsa strongly. Elsa was looking more and more uncomfortable by the second.

"Hey, Olaf?" Anna asked, suddenly having an idea. "If you've nowhere to go, no one to go home to... do you want to come with us?" She asked.

"OH YES, MISS ANNA!" He shouted, letting go of Elsa and hugging Anna tightly. "YES PLEASE! WHERE ARE WE GOING?!"

"Nowhere in particular... Just... away from here... and _quickly_! We need to go right now, okay Olaf!"

"OKAY!" The excited boy let go of Anna and ran in front of them towards the ships that were ported in the docks. He managed to run a good few feet before turning around and running back to the two women. "I just realised I have no idea which ship we go to so you'll have to lead the way."

Anna giggled at Olaf, knowing he would be an absolute pleasure, if not a bit annoying at times, to have on her ship.

Once they reached Anna's ship, she led the two new passengers on board and found Kristoff sitting on the floor, leaning against the mast, sleeping in the early morning sunlight.

"Kristoff, wake up!" Anna shouted, awakening her best friend from his slumber.

"Wha-!" He mumbled as his eyes half opened and he tried to focus on the three figures in front of him.

"Yeah, Kristoff! WAKE UP!" Olaf shouted at the groggy young man on the floor.

"Huh? Who's this guy?" Kristoff mumbled, obviously unimpressed by his rude awakening.

"Hi, I'm Olaf and I like warm hugs!" Olaf introduced, attempting to hug Kristoff but failing as the large man held him at arm's length.

"Please don't hug me," Kristoff deadpanned, taking a dislike to this annoying boy Anna had invited onto the ship.

"Kristoff, ready the crew, we're leaving now." Anna ordered as Kristoff let go of Olaf.

"What? Right _now_?"

"_Yes_! Right now! Wake everyone up and get ready to leave."

"Yes, Captain!" Kristoff answered as he ran down below deck and shouted for the rest of the crew to wake up.

Anna led Elsa up to the quarter deck as the crew came up above and took their places, readying the ship to leave port. Kristoff made his way up to Anna, questions filling his mind. Elsa stood rather awkwardly a little ways behind Anna, wanting to keep out of her way as she prepared to leave.

"Oh!" Kristoff finally realised the other new presence on the ship. "Is this-?"

"Elsa, Kristoff. Kristoff, Elsa." Anna introduced the two as quick as she could. Suddenly, Kristoff did the unexpected. He bowed. He bent his body forward, one hand behind his back as he did so, his head lowered as far as he could to the ground.

"Your Majesty."

Anna couldn't stop herself from bursting out laughing. Tears streamed down her eyes at her best friend's antics while Elsa just stood and stared, not knowing how to respond.

Kristoff looked up at Anna, displeased at her laughing. "What?!" He replied as he stood up straight.

"She's not the Queen, you idiot! You don't call her that!"

"Well I don't know! She's an important person! I've never met anyone like that before. For all I know, she could be royalty!" Kristoff attempted to argue.

Elsa brought a hand up to her mouth to politely stifle her giggle at the young man in front of her.

"It is a pleasure to meet you too, Kristoff," She said to him as she lowered her hand "I've heard... wonderful things... about you."

"What?! What's that supposed to mean?! Anna, what have you told her?!" He cried, distraught at the thought of Elsa knowing all his embarrassing antics of the past.

"Ugh! You big buffoon! I haven't said anything, calm down. Now get ready, we need to go." Anna was eager to leave Arendelle as soon as possible. "Raise the anchor!" She commanded to the crew.

"You heard her, guys! Raise the anchor!" Kristoff repeated, more forcefully than Anna.

Olaf watched in amazement all around him as the ship sailed out of the Arendelle docks and made way for the open sea. He turned his head up towards the rigging as crew members climbed up and down, when he noticed something wrong with the ship.

"Hey, Anna? How come your ship doesn't have a flag?" He asked as Anna steered the ship through the sea. Elsa looked up also as he asked this and noticed the distinct absence of flag atop the main mast. Elsa immediately guessed the reason why, knowing how Anna had come to obtain her own ship, but waited to see how she would explain this to the young, naive boy who had now taken occupancy on it.

"Well, you see, Olaf... this ship... hasn't always been my ship. And when I came upon ownership of it... that flag was, well... it wasn't the flag of my country, so I had to remove it, you see?" Anna tried to explain.

"Ohhhhhh... so you stole it, then?" Olaf said blatantly.

"What?! Noooooo... I didn't _steal_ it per say... I just..." She tried to find a reasonable excuse other than the fact she had indeed stolen it.

"Oh come one, Anna... just tell the kid the truth." Kristoff said. "We stole the ship and took the Spanish flag down. Because we're not Spanish. Simple as that."

"Oh I get it!" Olaf's face lit up in realisation. "You're pirates! This is a pirate ship! And you haven't got your black flag yet!" The young, excitable boy seemed reasonably well considering he had just found out he had taken residency on a pirate ship. In fact, he seemed rather pleased about it. "Oh does that mean I'm a pirate?! Is Elsa a pirate too? Are we pirates now?! Can I get an eye patch and a sword and a parrot and-"

"Olaf, slow down!" Anna interrupted. They had just about reached the open sea now and Arendelle was becoming smaller in the distance as they left it behind. "First of all, you don't need an eye-patch, both of your eyes are fine. Where on earth are you going to obtain a parrot? And no you are definitely not having a sword. You'll poke your eye out!"

"Then I can get an eye-patch!" The young boy piped up.

"Olaaaffff!" Anna moaned. Maybe inviting him on the ship hadn't been the best of ideas. But if he had no home and no family then, where else did he have to go? All he did was travel alone delivering people's messages and packages. At least now he had company, he had people to look after him.

"So... if the ship is getting a new flag, does that mean it has a new name too?" Olaf asked. Anna thought for a moment. That was a very reasonable question. With everything that had happened, she hadn't even thought about it's name. After a few seconds she answered.  
"Yes... as of this moment, I deem this ship The Snow Queen." She smiled over to Elsa as she renamed her newly acquired ship. Elsa blushed as Anna looked over to her as she blatantly named the vessel after her.

"Kristoff, can you take the wheel for a while?" Anna called over to him. The blonde man nodded and walked over to the helm, holding on to the wheel. "Come on now, Elsa. Follow me." Anna took Elsa's hand gently, picked up her bag which she had previously put down on the quarterdeck floor, and led her down below.

Elsa was taken to the Captain's quarters below deck where Anna resided on the ship. It contained an oak desk and chair, a small wardrobe, a large map of the world taking up most of one wall, a double bed, and even a copper bath in one corner.

"It's not much, compared to what your used to," Anna explained as Elsa had a look around. "But it's pretty extravagant compared to where I used to live." She chuckled nervously, awaiting Elsa's reaction.

"I think it's wonderful." Elsa replied in a small voice, amazed at how nice it was inside the ship. She had never been on a ship before, having never travelled out of Arendelle, and never expected it to be so nicely furnished

Anna placed Elsa's bag on the bed and sat down on the edge of it, watching as Elsa stumbled around the quarters. The ship was gaining speed now, Anna could feel it. She was used to the swaying of the ship on the waves by now and had never been much affected with sea sickness. Elsa, on the other hand, seemed to be having trouble.

She walked over to the bed where Anna was sitting and sat down next to her, not too gracefully.  
"Sorry about this," Anna said as she placed a hand delicately on top of Elsa's. "It does take a bit of getting used to the movement but after a while, you won't even notice! And I'll make sure we don't spend too long on your first trip at sea, okay! We'll port soon somewhere close, I promise. I made plans weeks ago to travel to England as soon as we left Arendelle. I wanted to dock in Plymouth as it's on the way to where we'll be heading afterwards but Connor warned me that it was a Navy city so, as a pirate ship, we definitely need to stay clear of that place. We'll be heading around to the West coast and docking in Liverpool, where Connor is actually from. He says it's a great city and we can rest there for a couple of nights while we gather a lot of supplies and maybe hire some more crew. I don't really have a big crew at the minute but... I'm working on it!" She explained, rambling a little in order to inform Elsa everything that was going to happen.

Anna squeezed Elsa's hand softly and looked her dead in the eye, seriousness all too obvious. "If, at any time, you want to go home... any time at all... you just let me know and I will turn this ship around. Any time, anywhere. You just say the word."

Elsa smiled softly at Anna's willingness to do that for her. She was too good to be true.

"Thank you, Anna." She whispered. "Thank you for everything. For taking me away from that life. I will truthfully miss my parents and Gerda terribly but... that was no life for me. I was trapped within my own home and about to marry a man who had threatened me. He was cruel and I could not go through with it. You saved me from that life and I can never thank you enough for that. And despite the sudden sickness that has overcome my stomach from the motion of this ship, there is nowhere else I would rather be than right here with you."

Tears were threatening to fall from Elsa's eyes, the happiness of that moment hitten her all too suddenly. Anna leaned over and placed a gentle kiss on Elsa's cheek, her lips lingering there for a while before pulling away just an inch.

"You're welcome, Elsa." Anna whispered into her ear. "I couldn't let you go through with that marriage. I would have done all within my power to stop that wedding if you so wished it. And I will do all that is in my power now to give you anything you wish, take you anywhere you want to go, and do anything you wish to do. The world is ours."

Elsa wrapped her arms around Anna tightly and they fell backwards onto the bed from the force, giggling with pure happiness. They clung to each other, smiling, happy just to have each other in their arms.

After a few moments passed, they heard a knocking at the door. Anna calmed down her excitableness and called out, "Who is it?"

"It's Connor, Miss Anna. We have a small predicament." The two women heard through the door to the Captain's quarters. Anna got up and walked over to it, opening it to reveal the distressed young man.

"What's the problem, Connor?" Anna asked, her mind going haywire as she thought of all the worst possible scenarios of what could be happening.

"It's Hamilton, Captain." Connor replied. Despite her worry, Elsa couldn't help but smirk at someone referring to Anna as 'Captain'. "He's not- woah!" Connor stopped abruptly mid-sentence as he noticed Elsa sitting on the bed in the Captain's quarters. His face immediately turned red and he started fiddling his hands together nervously. "Hello, Ma'am." He said to Elsa, a shyness in his voice that Anna had never heard before. She also noticed he didn't make eye contact with Elsa, instead looking awkwardly around the room at anything but her. Anna smirked at the realisation of what was happening as Elsa replied to the young man's greeting.

"Good morning, young sir."

"This is Elsa," Anna started. "Now... I know she's beautiful but-"

"What?!" Connor replied, his face darkening. "I never said-! I mean... not that she isn't! But-! Ummm..."

Anna laughed at how worked up he was getting.  
"Calm down, Connor, relax. She's going to be staying with us for the foreseeable future so... be nice to her!"

"Yes Miss! I mean... Captain! Yes Captain!" Connor said, stumbling over his words.

"Anyway, what were you saying about Hamilton?" Anna asked, her demeanour becoming more serious.

"He's not on the ship." Connor said simply, his tone changing as he told her of the situation.

"Not on the ship? What, did we leave him behind? Was he still on the docks when we left Arendelle? I mean, it's not all that big of a loss really, is it?" Anna said, not all that worried about leaving Hamilton behind.

Connor's distress heightened as he tried to convince Anna that it was indeed a problem.  
"The thing is, Miss Anna, Hamilton was on the ship when you returned. He was down below with us and he came up on deck when Kristoff called for us to get to work. He knew we were leaving port and he got off the ship before we had a chance to do so. He purposefully didn't want to leave Arendelle and didn't tell anybody why. Kristoff and I are worried he might be up to something."

"Up to something? Like what?" Anna was intrigued now, but still not as worried as Connor was, glad to be rid of Hamilton in all honesty.

"I don't know, Miss. I just got a bad feeling is all." Connor rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly, not feeling too good about Anna's lack of seriousness of the situation.

"Well, he's gone now and we've left him far behind. He can't be much trouble to us now he's not here. Good riddance, I say!"

"Um... If you say so, Miss- uh... Captain..." Connor replied. He supposed his Captain was right. If Hamilton wasn't here, there was nothing he could do to cause trouble for them. "I'll... umm... I'll get back to work, then. Sorry to have bothered you, Miss Anna."

"Connor! Don't worry about it!" Anna said to him, light-heartedly. "Trust me, it's not a problem. And if it is, we'll sort it out when we need to. Try not to worry so much, you'll get wrinkles!"

Connor laughed, thankful for Anna's constant high-spirited nature.  
"Ahhh, I guess you're right, Captain. Me and Kristoff reckoned you ought to know about the lack of crew member. He can't really be much trouble where he is, though. Sorry to be a bother."

"No bother at all, Connor. And you tell Kristoff to stop worrying. He's already got enough wrinkles as it is!"

Connor laughed again as he nodded and walked away.

Anna closed the door and turned around as she walked back towards Elsa, a smile on her face.

"Now, where were we, Your Majesty?" Anna smirked at the joke as she took Elsa's face in her hands and placed a soft, loving kiss on her lips.

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**Thanks for reading! A quick note to a few of you guys: I've noticed a lot of my readers who leave reviews are only guests who don't have FanFic accounts on here and you check the website every day to see if I've updated. If you can make an account, you can subscribe to the story and get an email update as soon as the new chapter is up! I didn't know if you Guests knew that or not but just to try and make things a little easier for you :) Also reviews and such are always welcome. I read every single one numerous times and I love them all! :D And if anyone has tumblr, give me a follow on there or check my blog out! I do post updates on there on how far I am with writing each chapter, so you will be more up to date with when it will be posted. **

**Quick note: the next chapter wont have a lot of elsanna in it as it will be mostly based on whats happening in Arendelle but I'll stick some in right at the end just for you guys. we cant be having an entire chapter without our two lovely ladies making an appearance now, can we?! :3**

**Much love!**


	14. Chapter 14

**HELLO MY LOVELIES! Okay first of all, I know it has been a hella long time since I've updated but I've just been so so so busy. I had a family member in hospital for a couple of weeks, so I was there every single day. I've had my own doctors and hospital appointments. I've been having horrific trouble with the Job Centre an trying to sign onto ESA (If you're living in the UK, then you know for certain how dreadful or benefits system is). It's been making my insecure mental state even worse so I've just been too down to write, even when I had 5 minutes to spare. But it is finally here. It's not as long as they usually are, I'm afraid. But it's something at least. I'm not entirely happy with this chapter tbh, but I've been out of it for so long, it's taken a while to get used to writing again. So I've been hesitant about uploading this for the past 4 days :/ anyway, enjoy it!**

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There was commotion in Arendelle Manor that morning. Once Gerda had announced that she had found Elsa's bedchamber to be empty when she went to wake her, the entire Manor was in a frenzy looking for her. The few staff that worked there were made to search the entirety of the Manor and grounds. The small army that Lord Kristiansen possessed were sent to look around the rest of Arendelle. By the time any of them had reached the docks, The Snow Queen was long gone. No one, with the exception of Gerda, had any idea what had happened to their beloved Elsa.

When word of the situation reached Hans, he immediately made his way to Elsa's bedchamber to see for himself, only to find that the room was indeed empty. The bed was unmade and the balcony doors had been left wide open. Hans was fuming. How dare she do this to _him_. In a fit of rage, he cleared the contents of the bedside table onto the floor with one swift movement of his arm. He grabbed hold of the bedsheets violently and threw them on the floor in the middle of the room. He planned to do the same with the pillows also, but as he picked the first one up, he noticed something underneath; an envelope.

His anger faded just enough to compose himself as he picked the envelope up and took hold of the contents inside. As Hans read what he found to be a letter, his anger level raised once more. His grip on the letter tightened as he read the ending. Whoever this Anna was, he had no doubt she had something to do with Elsa's disappearance. He shoved the letter back in the envelope and placed it in his pocket, planning to get to the bottom of this.

Someone cleared their throat behind him, catching Hans' attention. He turned around to see the maid, Gerda, was looking at him with a displeased expression on her face.

"What are you doing in here?" She questioned.

"And what business is it of yours that I investigate the bedchambers of my fiancée on the morning of her disappearance? I would think that _I_, of all people, would have permission to be in here." Hans answered in his usual snide tone.

"Well, if you would kindly remove yourself from the room," Gerda said as she walked in. "Lord Kristiansen has requested your presence in his study and I need to clean up the mess you have made." She looked at the contents he had thrown to the floor in his moment of pure rage.

"Very well, maid. See to it that you make it spotless in here." Hans ordered.

Gerda huffed at him as he left the room and started to place everything back on the bed, not noticing that the letter Elsa had kept under her pillows for so long had been taken.

As Hans made his way to Lord Kristiansen's study, one of Arendelle's guards caught up with him, a young man in his grasp.

"Sir! We have someone here who says he knows what happened to Miss Elsa!" The guard called out to Hans as he jogged up to him. Hans turned to look at the two of them. The stranger had olive coloured skin and a head of short cut dark hair. He looked like he hadn't had a good bathe in a long while. A sailor perhaps, Hans thought. "He came to the Manor moments ago saying that he saw everything."

"Leave him with me." Hans ordered.

"Yes Sir!" The guard let go of the young man and bid farewell to Hans.

"You know where she is?" Hans asked.

"I know who she is with and where they are headed. She left on a ship in the early hours of the morning... a _pirate_ ship." The stranger explained. "They're on their way to England."

"And _how_ do you know this exactly?" Hans sneered.

"Because I was on that ship before it docked here. My name is Hamilton."

"_What_?!" Hans could not believe what he was hearing. This boy had supposedly been on a ship that Elsa was now on and had sailed out of Arendelle. He grabbed Hamilton's upper arm and pulled him into the nearest room, which happened to be the library. Hans quickly checked to make sure it was empty before shutting the door behind them and turning to the boy. "Tell me everything." He ordered.

"I was on that ship, through no fault of my own, Sir." Hamilton started to explain. "I had been captured from a merchant ship by their brutal Captain," he lied. "I escaped just this morning as they were getting ready to leave for open sea. The Captain, though, Sir... it's a _woman_!" The disgust was evident in Hamilton's voice.

"A woman?" Hans asked. "And this Captain... does she, by any chance, go by the name 'Anna'?"

"Aye, Sir, she does."

"Tell me more. What is my fiancée doing on that ship?!" Hans nearly shouted, but kept his voice down in order to not draw attention to the two of them in the library.

"Well the Captain, having come from this land, has had a previous relationship with this Elsa lady. I've heard everything she's said to her quartermaster about it. They planned to come here and take her away with them so as to continue their relationship."

"And what about their heading? You said England... where abouts?!"

"They planned a route to the West coast of England, Sir," Hamilton continued. "And from there I do believe they'll be heading over to the Caribbean. If you leave quickly you will catch up with them."

Hans thought things over for a few moments before he came up with his plan.

"I am on my way to meet with Elsa's parents," he told Hamilton. "And you will be coming with me. You are to tell them of your escape from the ship and explain that Elsa has been kidnapped by these pirates."

"Kidnapped?"

"Yes, kidnapped. If they are under the influence she has been kidnapped then I will have the opportunity to retrieve her, kill the Captain, and bring her back so this marriage can commence. If she has been kidnapped, it will look a lot better on me once we return." Hans explained.

"Aye Sir."

"Now come with me, boy."

Hans lead the way out of the library and to Lord Kristiansen's study. Once there, he entered without bothering to knock and found both of Elsa's parents inside.

Lord Kristiansen was sat at his desk, hands folded together atop it. His wife was stood next to him, her hand gripping his shoulder as silent tears fell down her face.

"Ah Hans," Lord Kristiansen greeted. "Please, take a seat." He gestured to the single chair in front of his desk. Hans did as he had been asked and Hamilton came to stand rather awkwardly next to him. "And who, might I ask, is your friend?"

"This is Hamilton, My Lord. I met him only moments ago as I was on my way here; one of the guards brought him in. He says he knows where Miss Elsa has gone." Hans answered.

Lady Kristiansen gave a slight gasp at the news.  
"You know where she is? You know where my daughter has gone?!" She asked, her voice filled with hope.

"I do, My Lady," Hamilton said to the woman. "I mean, I don't know exactly where she is at this exact moment as she is on the open sea... but I know where she is headed."

"Well tell us, boy!" Lord Kristiansen ordered. "Where is my daughter?!"

"She has been taken captive, My Lord... by pirates! The same pirates that captured me after plundering the merchant vessel I was on. I'm not sure what they want with her as of yet, but I imagine once they have ported, they will send word of a ransom of some sort."

"And where are they porting, boy?"

"England, My Lord. Liverpool to be exact. But they are only staying a short while in order to gain supplies before they sail for the Caribbean. You must act fast if you wish to get her back soon."

As Lord Kristiansen thought the situation over, Hans spoke up.  
"My Lord, I believe that with a fleet of ships, _I_ could retrieve your daughter. You are not the only ones who care about Miss Elsa's safety, after all. I come from a military family, I could lead a fleet and defeat the pirates in order to bring her back home."

"And where do you propose we get this fleet?" Lord Kristiansen asked. "Arendelle has no fleet large enough for such a task, only a very small army. Your family's fleet, as small as it is, is down in the Southern Isles, much too far away. It would take weeks for them to arrive and we don't have the time."

"Yes, My Lord, that is true. But we both know someone much closer who does in fact own a rather powerful fleet; The Duke of Wesleton. The only problem is that my family does not have the money to hire his fleet and fund such an expedition. That, My Lord, would have to come from you." Hans said. "If you would be willing to pay the fee, then I could lead that fleet and save your daughter."

"Of course I would be willing!" Lord Kristiansen spoke harshly. "I want my daughter back!"

"Very well then, My Lord. If you could make the negotiations with the Duke, then I would be more than willing to set sail whenever he is ready," Hans said as he stood from the chair, not waiting to be dismissed.

Before he could realise what was happening, Lady Kristiansen had run over to him and flung her arms around his shoulders, sobbing.

"Oh thank you, thank you!" She cried. "You are such a brave, kind-hearted, handsome young man!"

Hans gingerly patted Lady Kristiansen on the back, feeling uncomfortable at the sudden contact, especially in front of the woman's husband.

"Oh what would we do without you?" she asked as her crying subsided. "Elsa will be so lucky to have you bring her home and marry her finally." She pulled her arms from around his shoulders and moved her hands down to grip his upper arms firmly. "Such a strong man. She will be safe with you." She squeezed his biceps in order to feel the muscle underneath her hands, almost swooning. Hans didn't know what to do with himself as the older woman held on to him. He supposed she was in shock with all that had happened that morning, and that was causing her to release her emotions in a slightly inappropriate way.

Lord Kristiansen cleared his throat and his wife immediately let go of Hans. She looked him in the eye and he delicate demeanour returned instantly. "Thank you," she whispered all too seriously. "Thank you for being willing to brave this task. You truly will make a remarkable husband for my daughter, and a remarkable leader for this land when the time comes."

Hans smiled down at her, as genuine as he could manage without revealing the malice he felt inside.

* * *

Arrangements were made with the Duke and he ordered the entirety of his fleet to sail down from Wesleton, which took three days in all. The fleet consisted of three Schooners, two Brigs, two Frigates, and a Galleon.

Hans was more than pleased with the amount of ships he had at his disposal. He would be taking up residency on the Galleon of course, along with Hamilton, and the Duke himself.

Lord Kristiansen had been more than willing to pay whatever price for the fleet in order for his daughter's safe return. He would much rather pay out this way for her to be brought home, rather than negotiate prices with pirates, who would no doubt ask for triple what he had already paid to the Duke.

Hans, Hamilton, the Duke, and the Navigator of the Galleon mapped out a route to England. They would start by travelling Southbound along the North Sea, over the English Channel, and finally turn North and sail towards the Irish Sea. They would then lay in wait, just off the coast of Holyhead, and ambush The Snow Queen as it made it's way out of Liverpool.

They left port as soon as they were prepared and sailed for the United Kingdom. Hans was going to retrieve that which belonged to him, and was personally planning to kill any who got in his way, especially this Anna.

* * *

After spending four days aboard The Snow Queen, Elsa was still getting used to the permanent movements of the ship. The sickness caused by the motion had eased somewhat, but not completely. She spent a lot of her time with Anna and Kristoff up on the quarterdeck as the redheaded Captain steered the ship.

During the night time, Anna and Elsa would retire to the Captain's Quarters almost as soon as dinner was over. Although they went to bed rather early, the two of them certainly did not fall asleep until much later at night.

They spent the hours getting to know each other physically and learning exactly how each other liked to be touched. Anna had found that the back of Elsa's neck was a very sensitive spot indeed, having only to place a gentle kiss in the area to get an entire body shiver and slight moan out of Elsa. Elsa had figured out that if she trailed a single finger slowly up the inside of Anna's thigh right before touching her exactly where she wanted it the most, the younger woman would positively writhe under her touch. And Elsa absolutely loved the affect she had on her. And each night they would fall asleep, naked and exhausted, in each other's arms.

On one particular afternoon, Elsa was on the Quarterdeck with Anna and had asked her if it was hard work steering the ship most of the time. Anna had told her that it does often get tedious, spending hour after hour sailing the seas, but she wouldn't have it any other way. Perhaps in the future she would hire a Helmsman to do the majority of the steering, but for the time being, Anna enjoyed being in complete control of her ship. Kristoff would take over when she needed breaks throughout the day. During the night they took shifts, with Kristoff sailing until the early hours of the morning, and Anna rising early to relieve him of his duty. Elsa liked to wake at the same time, even though Anna insisted she could stay in bed and get a few more hours of sleep. But Elsa like to be up top alone with Anna as they sailed and watched the sunrise together. For Elsa, those moments were perfect.

On the morning of their fifth day, just as the sun was starting to cast it's first rays over the ocean, Elsa had joined Anna as per usual upon the quarterdeck. She could never stray too far from Anna as she was still feeling out of place on the ship, and Anna would never complain, always loving having Elsa right by her side.

"Hey, Love," Anna called out to her. Elsa was stood by the edge of the ship looking down into the waters below.

"Hmm?" Elsa replied, turning around and walking over towards the Helm.  
"You know, I haven't noticed you use your magic since we've left... you are free to use it whenever you wish. No one's going to judge you here." Anna explained.  
"I know... I just... I guess I'm not used to being allowed to use it freely, I suppose."

Anna smiled at her, as if to confirm that she was indeed able to use it at any time. Elsa looked down at her hands. She was still wearing the gloves that had covered them for years, the only thing that helped her to prevent little icy accidents. It was more of a psychological thing than anything, but even so, they had indeed helped to block her powers.

Hesitantly, Elsa removed the glove on her right hand and stared at the bare skin underneath. After a moment, she proceeded to remove the other one and discarded them on the floor. Within a few seconds, small icy blue and white magical speckles appeared as if out of nowhere above each palm. She brought her hands almost together, leaving enough space for the cold magic to swirl around between the two. It gradually grew into a small ball shape of swirling magic as she manoeuvred her hands around it delicately. She then lay her hands flat before her, palms up, and thrust the icy magic upwards into the air, where it shot about six feet and gently exploded into what looked like small fireworks made purely out of snowflakes.

All the while, Anna watched in awe, never taking her eyes off of Elsa's magic. Once it had subsided, Elsa look towards Anna, wondering what her reaction would be. She knew Anna did not fear the magic as her parents did but she had never purposefully made a display of it like she had just done then. All of Anna's previous experiences with Elsa's magic had been unintentional. Elsa need not worry though, as Anna's face was bearing a wide grin, proud of what she had just shown her.

"Wow," Anna said, her voice full of amazement, "That was wonderful!"

"Oh," Elsa blushed at the compliment. "No, I just... it was just a few snowflakes. It was nothing, really." She mumbled, embarrassed at the praise.

"No, Elsa. It really was wonderful. What you can do, I think it is honestly the most amazing thing I've ever seen!" Anna insisted, knowing that she would never get tired of seeing Elsa use her magic. "_You_ are amazing."

Elsa's blush turned darker at Anna's words, still not used to such compliments all the time. "Come here," Anna held out her arm and motioned with her head for Elsa to come even closer to her. Elsa did so and, with one hand still on the helm, Anna put her arm around Elsa's waist and held on to her as she steered the ship. Elsa wrapped both of her arms around Anna and they sailed ever closer to their destination, enjoying each other's company in comfortable silence as they watched the sun continue to rise.

* * *

**Ahhhh I couldn't have a chapter without a nice bit of elsanna fluff at the end there. they're so happy! ^-^ hopefully i'll get right back into the swing of things and we'll be back to once a week updates! :D**


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